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Cornell University Library
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3 1924 028 101 073
Worses of
WILL S. MONROK
Turkey and the Turks - - - $3.00
In Viking Land: Norway, Its Peo-
ples, Its Fjords, and Its Fjelds - 3.00
Sicily, the Garden of the Mediterra-
nean -------- 3.00
Bohemia and the Cechs - - - - 3.00
L. C. PAGE ca. COMPANY
53 Beacon Street, Boston, Mass.
The original of tliis book is in
tine Cornell University Library.
There are no known copyright restrictions in
the United States on the use of the text.
http://www.archive.org/details/cu31 9240281 01 073
A PEASANT GIKL.
i
m
BOHEMIA AND
THE CECHS
THE HISTORY, PEOPLE, INSTITUTIONS, AND THE
GEOGRAPHY OE THE KINGDOM, TOGETHER WITH
ACCOUNTS OF MORAVIA AND SILESIA
BY
WILL S. MONROE
AUTHOB OP "turkey AND THE TtFBKS," "iN VIKING LAND:
NOEWAY; its peoples, its fjords and its PJBLDS,"
"SICILY, THE GARDEN OF THE MEDITERRANEAN," ETC.
ILLUSTRATED
I
i
L. C. PAGE AND COMPANY
BOSTON ^ ^ %J» MDCCCCX
\Aouroe^ \a1\1\ Sevjmour-^ \o^B
Copyright, X910,
By L. C. Page & Company
(mCOBPOBATED)
Entered at Stationers'' Hall, London
All rights reserved
First Impression, August, 1910
/
Slectrotyped and Printed by
THE COLONIAL PSESS
C. H. Simanda & Co., Boston, U.S.A.
"R.B.D.
DEDICATED TO
PROFESSOB FEANTISeK CXdA, Ph.D.,
OF THE UNIVERSITY OP PRAGUE, ONE OP THE AUTHOB'B
OLDEST AND MOST ESTEEMED BOHEMIAN FBIENDS
FOREWORD
When one recalls the large number of popu-
lar geographical works that have been pub-
lished in recent times, it will surprise many
readers to learn that this is the first general
work of travel and description on Bohemia in
English. It may not, therefore, be too much
to hope that it will meet a real need; for
clearly a country so old and so new as Bohe-
mia has numerous claims on the travel lover.
The author's interest in Bohemia dates back
nearly twenty years, when he began the trans-
lation of one of the educational works of John
Amos Komensky, one of the great spiritual
leaders of the country. Subsequently at the
request of Professor (now President) Nicholas
Murray Butler, of Columbia University, he
wrote a life of Komensky for the' Great Edu-
cator Series.
These labours brought him in touch with the
vi Foreword
history and the literature of the country, es-
tablished friendly relations with Bohemian
scholars, and resulted in a number of visits to
the ancient kifigdom, the most recent trip being
an extended tour that included all the places
of interest in the country.
As in his other travel-books in this series —
Turkey, Norway, and Sicily — the author's aim
has been, not merely to write a geographic
treatise of Bohemia, but to give a general sur-
vey of the developed and developing civiliza-
tion of the kingdom- — the people and their
ethnic characteristics, social and political in-
stitutions, economic and industrial conditions,
religion and education, literature, music, paint-
ing, sculpture, architecture, etc.
While the human side of the subject has been
most strongly emphasized, the geography and
physical features of the country have not been
neglected. The opening chapter gives a gen-
eral survey of the topography of Bohemia, its
mountains, plateaus, rivers, lakes, climate,
flora, and fauna; three chapters are given to
the city of Prague ; Carlsbad, Marienbad, and
the other spa resorts have a chapter; the pro-
vincial towns in the river basins and among
the mountains, which form the natural boun-
Foreword vii
daries of the country, have a chapter, and the
geography of Moravia and Silesia receives
separate treatment.
The beginnings of the Bohemian nation, its
relation to the other Slavic tribes and to the
Keltic Boji and the Teutonic Marcomanni, its
conflicts with avaricious Germans and barbaric
Huns, and the transition from paganism to
Christianity are briefly treated in the second
chapter. The period of Charles IV, the Golden
Age of Bohemian history, which witnessed
the establishment of the Cech as a literary
language, the foundation of the university of
Prague, and the development of a national
school of art, is the second historical chapter.
The great moral revolution, with Master
John Hus, the patriot and martyr, as the lead-
ing personality, and the terrible and desolating
religious wars of the fifteenth century form the
central themes of a third chapter. George of
Podebrad, and the brilliant era which his reign
inaugurated, the Thirty Years' War and the
end of Bohemian independence, and the cen-
turies of misfortune and oppression which
followed this calamity complete the historical
part of the book. On controverted matters, the
author has followed Palacky, Tomek, Gindely,
viii Foreword
Helfert, Liitzow, and other recognized Bohe-
mian historical authorities.
The seventh chapter of the book deals with
the modern Bohemian renaissance and traces
the buildiag of a new nation on the ruins of
a glorious past. The removal, in the short
space of fifty years, of two centuries of Ger-
man alluvium, under which the Cechs were
buried by the disastrous battle of the White
Mountain, and the evolution of a virile and
highly complex civilization, cannot fail to win
the admiration of the modem world.
Two chapters are given to the people of the
country — one to the Bohemians, their mental
and physical characteristics, and one to the
Germans and Jews. If the author has not
painted the acclimated foreigners in glowing
colours, it is because he has found the Bohe-
mian specimens not very worthy representa-
tives of their racial stocks. He passed two
years as a university student in Germany, and
has only the kindliest feelings for the Germans
of the Fatherland; but he is forced to admit
that the Germans in Bohemia constitute a not
very likable species of the Teutonic genus.
Social institutions, including the Sokols, li-
braries, and periodicals, are described in the
Foreword ix
tenth chapter ; religion, saints, and martyrs in
the eleventh; schools, universities, and other
educational institutions in the twelfth; lan-
guage and literature in the thirteenth, and the
fine arts — painting, sculpture, architecture,
and music — in the fourteenth, fifteenth, and
sixteenth chapters. Bohemia's contributions
to the creative arts, as these chapters point
out, give her an honourable place among the
culture-nations of modern times.
Two chapters are given to the distinctly
material side of Bohemian civilization — agri-
culture, industry, and commerce; and the ap-
pendixes at the end of the book provide definite
information for the prospective traveller and
point out some of the most important sources
of information for readers who may wish to
make further studies. For the use of the
books listed in the bibliography the author is
indebted to Mr. John Cotton Dana and his
obliging colleagues in the Public Library at
Newark, New Jersey.
Many Bohemian friends have aided in the
collection and the verification of the informa-
tion presented in the book, but the list is too
long to print in this connection, and the obliga-
tion must be discharged with a blanket-expres-
Foreword
sion of thanks. The two friends who so
patiently read the proof of the book must,
however, be named — Thomas Capek, Esq., a
leading American Bohemian author, and Mrs.
Clara Vostrovsky Winlow, the author's class-
mate at Stanford University.
Although consistency has not always been
possible, the author has for the most part
employed Bohemian, rather than Grerman
spelling of geographic names. This is con-
trary to the practice of most American and
English writers. There is however no good
reason for the use of the German spellings.
If places have not been anglicized, preference
should be given to the geographic usages of
the countries in which they are located. Amer-
ican and English readers would clearly resent
Venedig and Mailand for Venice and MUan
in English books on Italy, and for precisely
the same reason they should object to Kutten-
berg and Wartenberg for Kutna Hora and
Sedmihorky in books on Bohemia.
Will S. Moneoe.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
The Geography of Bohemia
Geographic individuality of Bohemia — Form of the coun-
tnr — Mountain boundaries — The Ore mountains • —
The Sudetic chain — Moravian mountains — The Bohe-
mian Forest — The basin of the Elbe — Hills in the
interior — The rivers of the country — Lakes and
tarns — Climate — Rainfall — Forest area — Fruits —
Minerals of the kingdom — Famous mineral springs —
Fauna and flora — Population — Increase of the
Bohemian element — Emigration to foreign countries —
The principal cities — Prague and its suburbs — Small
cities — Bohemians in the United States — Distribution
of the Bohemians in America
CHAPTER II
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation
When the Bohemians occupied the country — Keltic
Boj and Teutonic Marcomanni — Conflicts with the
Avars — Social habits of the early Bohemian tribes —
Chastity and faithfulness — Village organization — Local
government — The legend of LibuSa — Pf emysl and the
Bohemian dynasty — Attempts of Charlemagne to
conquer Bohemia — Bofivoj I and the introduction of
Christianity — The barbaric Huns — Invasion of Bohe-
mia by the Germans — Reign of Boleslav the Cruel —
Rise of Poland — Bfetislav I, the restorer of Bohemia —
xii Contents
First king of Bohemia — Skvonic liturgy replaced by
the Latin — A meddlesome German emperor — Question
of the celibacy of the Bohemian clergy — Internal dis-
sensions — Frederick Barbarossa — The language ques-
tion — Pfenaysl Otakar — German influence during
the reign of Vdclav I — Ctonflicts with the Hapsburgs —
German adventurers — Rudolph of Hapsburg — John
of Luxemburg — Prince Charles 16
CHAPTER in
Pekiod of Chables rV
The golden age of Bohemian history — The qualities of
Charles — His early training — National sympathies —
Recognition of the Bohemian language — Foundation
of the university of Prague — Artistic interests — Karlflv
T^ — Prague enlarged — Beginnings of Carlsbad —
The Golden Bull — The movement for church reform —
Forerunners of Master John Hus — Conrad Waldhausen
— Milifi of Kromffife — Matthew of Janov — -Thomas
of Stitn^ — Commercial prosperity during the reign of
Charles — Reforms inaugurated by the great emperor-
king — Personal characteristics 37
CHAPTER IV
John Hits and the Moral Rbvgltjtion
Beginnings of the reign of Vdclav IV — Church scandals —
Burden of taxation for churches — The schism in the
Roman church and its effect on Bohemia — Rival
pontiffs — Sale of indulgences — Opposition to indul-
gences in Bohemia — Appearance of John Hus —
His early life and training — The writings of Wycliffe —
The Bethlehem chapel — Jerome of Prague — Reputed
miracles — Chronic antagonism between Germans and
Bohemians — The university as a factor in the contest —
Decree of Kutnd. Hora and departin-e of German mas-
ters and students — Conflicts with the Roman pontiffs —
Contents xiii
Rival popes — Venders of indulgences — Hus excom-
municated and Prague laid imder interdict — Hus in
exile — Sigismimd and the council of Constance —
Hus promised a safe-conduct — The trial and martyrdom
of Hus — Jerome of Prague also burned as a heretic —
Effect of the news on Bohemia — Beginnings of the
Hussite wars — The question of communion in both
kinds — Death of Vdclav and political parties — Utra-
quists and Taborites — The caUxtines — Nicholas of
5usinec — The crusade against Bohemia and John
Ziika — Qualities of the great Bohemian leader — In-
vading armies repulsed by Zi2ka — The Articles of
Prague — Council of Basel grants religious autonomy
to the Bohemians — Momentary peace — The guardian-
ship of Ladislav SO
CHAPTER V
GeOBGE of PoDBBBaU) THE PkOTBSTANT KiNG
One of the most interesting epochs in Bohemian history —
Struggle for supremacy during the minority of Ladis-
lav — George of Pod&rad becomes regent — Disinte-
gration of the Taborites — Question of religious rights
again revived — John of Rokycan — An unconfiraied
archbishop — Struggles with Rome — Brief reign of
Ladislav — George of PodSbrad becomes king of Bohe-
mia — Period of reUgious tranquillity — Renewed con-
flicts and attempts to abrogate the Articles of Prague —
Conflict with the papal legate — German party takes
sides with Rome — George exconmiimicatea — Alliance
with Poland — Death of King George — His qualities
as a statesman — Confirmation of the Polish prince —
Invasion of Bohemia by Matthew of Hungary — Vlad-
islav and the papal party — Moral delinquency of the
priests — Reign of King Louis — The reformation of
Martin Luther — Ferdinand and the religious quarrels
in Germany — Efforts to prevent the spread of Prot-
estantism in Bohemia — Growth of the Bohemian
Brethren — The wavering policy of Maximilian — Fer-
dinand and the counter reformation — The Letter of
Majesty 81
xiv Contents
CHAPTER VI
End op Bohemian Independence
Rudolph deposed — Growth of Protestantism in -Bohemia
— Interpretations of the Letter of Majesty — Ferdi-
nand and religious intolerance — Destruction of Prot-
estant chxirches — Conflicts at Prague _ — Provisional
government established — Jesuits banished by the
Protestants — Maximilian of Bavaria comes to file aid
of Ferdinand — Defeat of the Bohemians in the battle
of White Mountain — Return of the Jesuits — Execution
and exile of the Bohemian nobles — Property confis-
cated — The Protestant religion suppressed in the king-
dom of Bohemia — Destruction of the national literature
by the Jesuits — Extension of the central authority —
Ferdinand forced to recognize the historic rights of the
Bohemians — Albert of Waldstein — His role in the
Thirty Years' War — Invasion of Bohemia by the
Swedes — The peace of Westphalia — The country
ruined by the war — Maria Theresa — Enlightened
despotism — Conquest of Silesia by the Prussians —
Second expulsion of the Jesuits — Joseph II — Decree
of religious toleration — System of serfdom modified —
Leopold II and Francis — Napoleon and the Bohemians
— Metternich and the half century of reaction —
Francis Joseph 107
CHAPTER Vn
Modern Bohemian Renaissance
Effect of the edict of religious toleration — The nobility
and the modern movement — Foundation of the Bohe-
mian National Museum — Literary activities — Jung-
mann and Palack^ — Historic rights of the people
emphasized — Tragic career of Karel Havlifiek — The
refusal to form part of the German confederacy — The
pan-Slav congress at Prague — Revolution of 1848
and its consequences — The concordat of 1855 — Aus-
trian defeats — Proposed national parliament — An
Austrian bureaucrat — Constitution of 1861 — The Aus-
gleich of 1867 — Cisleithanian parliament — Declaration
of the historic rights of the Bohemians — The rump
Contents xv
parliament and its collapse — Efforts to conciliate the
Bohemians — Efforts to suppress the Slavs — More con-
cessions — Bohemian faculties in the university of
Prague — Extension of the use of the Bohemian lan-
guage — The noisy pan-Germans — Count Aehrenthal
and the outlook 133
CHAPTER VIII
The Bohemian People
Earliest traces of Slavic peoples in Europe — Divisions of
the Slavic families — Bohemians first in point of culture
— Ethnic characteristics — Prominent physical features
— National costumes — Han^ks and Hordks — Not a
religious people — Relation of church and state — Pun-
ishment for sacrilege in Bohemia — Love for music —
Marriage and Divorce — Industry and intelligence —
Reading habits of the people — Civic and philan-
thropic institutions — Government — Parliament of the
kingdom — Inequalities in the electorate — Numerous
political parties — Favours shown the Germans — Jews
and business — Administration of justice — Austrian
of&cials — Compulsory miUtary service — Taxation and
the imperial budget — The monetary unit — Material
progress of the Bohemians 156
CHAPTER IX
Germans and Jews in Bohemia
Foreign elements in the population of Bohemia — Effect
of the destruction of the national language and literature
— Decrease in the proportion of Germans — Failure of
the Germans to get a permanent foothold in the country
— Where they are found — Mixture of Germans and
Jews — Common bond of union the dislike of the Bohe-
mians — Antiquity of the Hebrew colony in Prague —
Josephtown and its historic monuments — The Jewish
quarter of Prague in the sixteenth century — Naming
of the Jews by Maria Theresa — ■ Special privileges
enjoyed by the children of Israel — Why the Jews of
Bohemia are Germans rather than Bohemians . . 177
xvi Contents
PA6B
CHAPTER X
Social iNSHTtrTioNs: The Sokols
Beginniligs of the Sokols — Early leaders in the move-
ment — The first unions — Organizations in the provin-
cial towns — Opposition of the imperial government —
Part played by gynmastics in the association — Relar
tion of the Sokols to the national movement — District
organization and supervision — The jubilee — Intellec-
tual and moral influence of the Sokols — Historic
pilgrimages — International meets • — The tournament
of 1907 — Strength of the Sokols — Library move-
ment in Bohemia — PubUc libraries at Prague — The
Bohemian Industrial Museum — Vojta NAprstek and
his labours — What he did for libraries — The peri-
odical literature of Bohemia and its influence ^ The
daily journals of Prague — Weeklies, monthlies, and
quarterlies 189
CHAPTER XI
Religion, Saints, and Mabtybs
Nature of the paganism of the earliest inhabitants of
Bohemia — Gods and goddesses — Ethics of the early
religion — Introduction of Christianity by Greek mission-
aries from Constantinople — Its adoption in Moravia —
Earliest Christian churches — Conflicts with the Chris-
tians in Germany — The use of the Slavonic liturgy and
its approval by the early popes — Efforts of Pope
Gregory VII to secure the adoption of the Latin liturgy
— Spread of Christianity by Bof ivoj I and Ludmila —
Canonization of Ludmila — Saint Vdclav — John of
Nepomuk — His legend as related by the Jesuits — Not
an historic character the verdict of modern historians —
The martyrdom of Master John Hus — His zeal for
church reform — • His service to the national language
and literature — Jerome of Prague and his martyrdom —
The Roman Catholic church in Bohemia — Relation
of the church to the state — Ecclesiastical divisions of
the kingdom — Protestants and Hebrews . . . 210
Contents xvii
CHAPTER XII
Education in Bohemia
Education in relation to the national movement —
Komensk^ the great Bohemian educator — The " dark
ages " following the end of Bohemian independence —
Nature of the present elementary school system —
Character of school buildings — Teachers and their
training — The secondary school system — Gymnasia
and real-schools — Weakness in the system of the
education of girls — Technical and industrial education
— The university of Prague — Its influence during the
mediaeval period — In the hands of Jesuits and Germans
— Revival of the Bohemian faculties — Influence on
the national life and development 233
CHAPTER XIII
Bohemian Language and Literature
Origin of the Bohemian language — The original Cyrillic
alphabet — Adoption of tne Latin characters — Func-
tion of the consonants — Two branches of the Bohe-
mian language — Early historic development of a
prose literature — Its destruction by the Jesuits after
the Thirty Years' War — Question of the manu-
scripts — Early Bohemian hymns — Kxistian and Cos-
mos of Prague — Literary renaissance during the Hussite
moral revolution — John Zi2ka — John Amos Ko-
menskj- — Two centuries of intellectual barrenness —
Dobrovsk^ and the commencement ^f the modern
renaissance — Jungmann, KolMr, and SafaHk — Fran-
tiSek Palack^ and the history of Bohemia — Ecclesi-
astical censorship and its influence on literature —
Hanka and Tyl — Dramatic literature — Modem Bohe-
mian poets — Zeyer — SKdek — Cech — Vrchlick^ —
Machar and Svoboda — Bohemian novelists — Critical
and historical works — V16ek — BartoS — Masaryk —
Scientific literature — Geography, travel, and descrip-
tion— Recent historical writers — Count Liltzow . 249
xviii Contents
CHAPTER XIV
Painters and Paintings
Bohemia an art centre during the reign of Charles IV —
The Prague school of painting — Fourteenth century
artists — Theodore of Prague — The paintings in the
Karliiv T^n castle — Destruction of Bohemian art
by Joseph II — Revival of art traditions at the close
of the eighteenth century — The academy at Prague
and its first directors — Effect of the romantic
movement on Bohemian artists — Differentiation of
Cech and German art — The Manfes family—; New Bo-
hemian society of fine arts — Hellich and Cermdk —
Svoboda and Maixner — Josef Manfes and his followers
— ZeniSek and AleS — Influence of France on the
painters of Bohemia — Jaroslav Cermdk, Pinkas, and
Bro^ik — The allegorical painters — Genre painters —
Landscape painting and the young artists of to-day . 284
CHAPTER XV
SCUI/PTURE AND ABCmTBCTDRE
Few remnants of Gothic sculpture — Absence of monu-
ments to great spiritual heroes in Bohemia — - Inartistic
religious effigies — Statue of Charles IV — Modern
Bohemian sculptors — VdclaV Lev^ — Josef Myslbek
— Ludivik Simek — Seidan, Seeling, Popp, Kafka, and
Mauder — Stanislas Sucharda and the Palack^ mon-
ument — L. Saloun and the monument of John Hus —
Minor sculptors — Bohemian mediaeval architecture —
Architectural view from the Belvedere — St. Vitus
cathedral — The abbey of St. George — The Charles
bridge — The old Town Hall — The TSm church —
Palaces at Prague*— Architectural interests at Kutnd,
Hora — • Other Bohemian towns — Beginning of the
modern architectural movement — Some of the modern
architects — Hdvka, Zitek, Schultz, and Mocker . . 307
Contents xix
CHAPTER XVI
Bohemian Music and Composers
Music the best-known of the fine arts in foreign coun-
tries — Its development during the mediseval period —
Contributions of John Hus and the reUgious reformers
— Bohemian hymnology — Effect of congregational
singing in the vernacular — Sacred music of the Bohe-
mian Brethren — Bfld Hora and the decUne of interest
in church music — Folk-songs and foU:-dances —
Chorals — Interest of the nobiUty in music — .Italian
opera at Prague — First opera sung in the Cech —
Beginnings of the modem school of national music —
Smetana and his labours — ■ The contemporaries of
Smetana — Antonfn Dvof dk — His early training and
struggles — Tardy recognition of his work — Nature
of his compositions — His fund of melody — Fibich
and the lyric drama — His notable works — Kova-
fovic and Foerster — Novdk and Josef Suk — Nedbal
and the other younger composers — Writers on the
philosophy, history, and aesthetics of music — Otakar
Hostinsk^ — Music schools in Bohemia — Singing
societies 322
CHAPTER XVII
Agbicttlttjke in Bohemia
Bohemia a rich agricultural country — Large amount of
the land in the hands of the nobility — Big estates not
intensively cultivated — Abolition of serfdom and its
influence on agriculture — Sub-division of the farms —
Size of the holdings — Scarcity of farm-labourers —
Wages — How the small farmers supplement their earn-
ings — Peasant industries — Home-made fabrics and
peasant costumes — Influence of home-industries upon
farm-labour — The Jew money-lender a menace to
agriculture — Lingering effects of serfdom — Nature of
the agricultural products — Advances made in horti-
culture — Cattle-rearing — What education is doing
for the farmer 346
XX Contents
CHAPTER XVIII
Inrustrt and Commekce
Bohemia one of the leading commercial countries in Europe '
— Plzen and the manufacture of beer — The liquor
industry — Construction of locomotives and railway
carriages at Prague — The textile industries — Paper —
Bohemian glass ^ Chinaware and porcelain — Mineral
products in Bohemia — The' coal fields — Iron —
Diversified home-industries — ■ Lace — Prague the centre
of the industrial life of the kingdom — Other industrial
towns — The commerce of Bohemia — Exports and
imports — Commercial relations with the United
States — Means of transportation — Waterways, rail-
ways, and highways 361
CHAPTER XIX
The Old Town op Pkagtje
Divisions of the city of Prague — The Old Town —
Earliest bridges spanning the Vltava — The Charles
bridge — Its towers and monuments — The old Town
Hall — Chapel and council chamber — The T^n church
-Alterations by the Jesuits — The Powder gate —
Josephtown, the ancient ghetto — Old synagogue and
hall — The oldest Hebrew burying-ground in Europe —
Some noted tombs — The VySehrad, the acropolis of
Prague — The basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul —
Its legends — The church cemetery — An old Slavic
monastery 376
CHAPTER XX
Hradcant: The Kremlin of Prague
The_ huge pile of buildings known as Hrad6any — For
eight centuries the residence of the Bohemian kings —
Erection of a royal palace here by Charles IV — Addi-
tions by Vladislav II, Ferdinand I, and Rudolph —
The noble Gothic hall of King Vladislav — The round
Contents xxi
towers and council chamber — The Cathedral of St.
Vitus — Its Gothic choir — Tombs of the Bohemian
kings — The chapel of St. Vdclav — Interior decorations
— The church of St. George — Tomb of St. Ludmila —
The Belvedere — Capuchin monastery and the church
of Loretto — The abbey of Strahov — Palaces of the
Bohemian nobility — The Waldstein palace — Its gar-
den-refectory — Bohemian Ethnographic Museum —
The Petf in — Picturesque houses — The gaudy Jesuit
church of St. Nicholas 390
CHAPTER XXI
Modern Prague
Prague an interesting modem city — How it has been
modified by the recent national movement — The
Bohemian National Museum — Its numerous collections
— Valuable books and ancient manuscripts — The
gradual of Prague — ■ The Bohemian National Theatre —
Destruction by fire of the first building — The present
home of drama and the opera — The Rudolphinum —
Picture gallerjr — Museum of industrial art — Gallery
of modern paintings — Public parks and gardens —
, Monuments to national heroes — Educational institu-
tions — Banks — Municipal street railway — Other
municipal institutions — Prague admir^ibly admin-
istered — H6tels — Railway connections — American
and English tourists 405
CHAPTER XXII
Carlsbad and Mahienbad
Spa resorts in western Bohemia — Geological structure
of the Ore mountains — Deposits of glacial ages —
Nature of the thermal springs — The sprudel waters
of Carlsbad — Some of the famous springs — Founda-
tion of the town by Charles IV — Inundations of the
Tepl valley — Diseases treated at Carlsbad — Municipal
control of the springs — Bathing estabhshments —
Attractions of the town — Ethnic types represented
xxii Contents
PAQB
among the summer guests — A favourite resort of
royalty — Shipment of the waters — Carlsbad also
an industrial centre — " Beware of shop-keepers " —
Marienbad — Springs and bath-houses — The abbey
of Tepl — Kranzen^ad — Nature of the waters — The
moor-Daths — Teplitz 418
CHAPTER XXIII
Other Bohemian Towns
Provincial towns of historic interest — Tdbor and the
Taborites — Budfijovice — Hlubokd castle — Knunlov
and the Bohemian Forest — Towns on the upper
Vltava — Pffbram, — Husineo — SpI6dk — Eisenstein
— Doma^lice and the Chods — Towns east of R-ague
— Kutnd, Hora — The Sedlec monastery — Cdslav
and John Ziika — Pardubice — Podfibrady the birth-
place of Bohemia's only Protestant king — Krdlov6
Hradec — JiJln and its numerous interests — The
rocks of Prachov — Sedmihorky — Turnov — Itoudnice
— Litom^fice 434
CHAPTER XXIV
Moravia and Silesia
Topography of Moravia — Mountains surrounding the
country — Morava river basin — Climate and rainfall —
Mineral products — Agricultural lands — Racial stocks
in Moravia — Early introduction of Christianity —
National costumes — The Hor^ks — The Handks —
The Vlachs — The Slovaks — Government of Moravia
— Brno — Olomouc — Social institutions — Schools —
How the Germans and Jews are favoured — Causes of
racial strife — The Moravian Brethren — Origin of the
sect — Labours in behalf of education — The duchy
of Silesia — Geographic features — Chief characteristics "
— The capital 449
Appendixes . . 465
Index 475
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
A Peasant Girl Frontispiece
Map of Bohemia xiv
Snow Dome in the Giant Mountains 3
.J
Edmundsklamm Rock Sculptures 7
Village in the Bohemian Forest . . . . . . 13
Stare Mgsto (Old Town) 31
Carlsbad: Founded by Charles IV 41
T^n Church 43
The Cathedral, KutnSl Hora 60
Remnant of ZiJka's Fortifications at Tdbor ... 72
City of the Taborites 82
Kutnd Hora . . . ^ 96
Bodenbach (Podmokly) 121
Krdlov^ Hradec 125
Bohemian National Museum 134
Eger (Cheb) 154
Bohemian Peasants at Doma^lice 158
German Theatre at Prague 181
Old Jewish Cemetery at Prague 183
Dr. Karel GroS 199
Vojta Ndprstek 201
HavlI6ek Monument at JiiSfn 206
Cathedral at Olomouo 213
Peasant Couple 229
An Elementary School 234
A Secondary School at T&bor 238
xxiii
xxiv List of Illustrations
PAGB
Interior of a Peasant Farm House 251
Svatopluk Cech 272
Jaroslav Vrohlick^ 274
Alois Jirdsek 276
Vdclav Vladijov Tomek 282
Viclav Brollk 299
Rudolphinum; Art Gallery 306
Stanislav Sucharda . 313
Old Town Tower of Charles Bridge 317
J. Hldvka 320
Bedfich Smetana ■ 330
Antonln DvoMk . 332
Zdengk Fibich 338
Bohemian String Quartet 344
Citizens' Breweries at Plzeii 362
Old Town 376
Old Town Hall 379
Powder Gate 381
Hradfiany: the Kremlin of Prague 390
Sohwarzenberg Palace 399
Maid, Strana (Small Town) 403
Modern Prague ■ . . 405
Street in Modern Prague 416
The Sprudel at Carlsbad 420
Marienbad 428
Hlubokd Castle 436
A Chod at Domallice 440
Zi2ka. Square at Ji6in 445
A Hand,k 45^
Slovaks 454
Olomouc: the Ancient Capital of Moravia . . . 456
BOHEMIA
AND THE CECHS'
CHAPTEE I
THE GEOGRAPHY OF BOHEMIA
Geographic individuality of Bohemia — Form of the countiy —
Mountain boundaries — The Ore mountains — The Sudetic
chain — • Moravian mountains — The Bohemian Forest —
The basin of the Elbe — Hills in the interior — The rivers
of the country — Lakes and tarns — Climate — Kainfall —
Forest area — Fruits — Minerals of the kingdom — Famous
mineral springs — Faima and flora — Population — In-
crease of the Bohemian element — Emigration to foreign
countries — The principal cities — Pra^e and its suburbs
— Small cities — Bohemians in the Umted States -;- Distri-
bution of the Bohemians in America.
The geographic individuality of Bohemia is
more marked than that of any other country
in Europe. As Cosmos, one of the early chron-
iclers, remarks, " there is no stream in Bohe-
mia that does not rise within its borders."
Switzerland and Transylvania each have clear
' The words Bohemian and Cech (pronounced check) are
used synonymously throughout this work. When other races
residing in the country are referred to, they are specifically
mentioned, as Germans, Jews, etc.
1
Bohemia and the Cechs
and well-centred individualities, but Bohemia
" instead of letting its rivers run away, emits
the abundant waters that come down from its
wide framework of mountains through one sin-
gle opening. This fact, and the radial con-
vergence of the water courses toward the mid-
dle of the country, tend to give it unusual inner
solidarity and unity, preventing a divergence
of economic interests." Geographically the
country has that physical autarchy — the ca-
pacity to provide for itself — which Aristotle
postulated as a necessary condition for polit-
ical independence.
Bohemia is diamond-shaped, the four points
of the diamond taking the directions of the
points of the compass. Its area is a little more
than twenty thousand square miles, or about
that of the states of New Hampshire and Ver-
mont combined. The four sides of the quad-
rangle are surrounded by mountains and the
interior of the country is a bowl-like basin,
suggesting that the land was once an inland sea
about the size of Lake Michigan. It was even-
tually drained by a channel worn by the Elbe
through the sandstone mountains on the Saxon
frontier in the northwest. The depression is a
plateau of primitive and Paleozoic rocks, with
The Geography of Bohemia 3
basaltic cones of considerable height rising out
of the basin. Some of these peaks, like the Sip
Mountain in the centre of the basin with an
altitude of 1,325 feet, belong to the later earth
movements of Europe.
The boundaries of the country are clearly
marked by mountain ranges. In the northwest
are the Ore mountains (Erzgebirge) which rise
like a wall above the valley of the Eger (Ohfe)
but slope gently to the Saxon side. The range
is relatively uniform iu height — the average
altitude being a little more than twenty-five
hundred feet — and the summits are generally
rounded. The highest peak in the range is the
Keilberg (4,182 feet). Numerous roads cross
the Ore mountains in all directions, and on one
of these is Gottesgab, the most elevated town
in Bohemia (3,373 feet) and once a busy mining
place.
In the northwest is the Sudetic chain, a laby-
rinth of mountains which, in contour, recalls
the Alps. Here among the Giant mountains
we find some of the highest peaks of Bohemia,
such as the Snow Dome (5,186 feet) and the
Old Father (4,890 feet). The peaks of the
Giant mountains rise abruptly from the chain
and their lower slopes have luxuriant forests.
Bohemia and the 6echs
In the southeast is the height of land com-
monly spoken of as the Moravian mountains,
but there are no well defmed ranges or peaks,
a fact wMch explains the ethnic unity of Bo-
hemia and Moravia.
The Bohemian Forest is in the southwest.
Here we find a cluster of piled-up mountains
of gneiss and schist. These mountains form an
excellent strategical frontier for the country,
the interior slopes being gentle and the outer
slopes abrupt and difficult of access. Only two
passes give easy entrance into Bohemia from
Germany. The pass at Domazlice (Taus),
which is 1,473 feet above sea-level, leads
across the centre of the range, and the
Golden Path (2,664 feet) a little farther to
the south.
The elevated portions of the Bohemian For-
est contain numerous picturesque lakelets near
the summits of the highest peaks. They oc-
cupy crater-like depressions under the moun-
tain tops, which gives them a sombre, solitary,
and wild appearance. At one end of the lake
or tarn a wall of granite rises abruptly to the
summit, forming a segment of the circle, the
rest of the lake being enclosed by the pine-
clad arms of the mountain. Several of
The Geography of Bohemia 5
these lakelets — like tlie Black sea, Arber
sea, and the Devil's lake — are of very great
depth.
The forest region has an average elevation
of about two thousand and four hundred feet.
Several of the peaks like the Vel Javor (Arber-
berg), the Koklah (Kachelberg), and the Bou-
bin attain altitudes of four thousand five hun-
dred feet. These peaks are all densely covered
with silver fir, which, with the numerous brook-
lets and mountain tarns, add to the sombre
and picturesque effect. The forests are under
government supervision, and the trees may not
be cut down until they have attained a cer-
tain maturity — usually after thirty years of
growth. The silver fir trees in the Bohemian
Forest frequently reach heights of one hundred
feet.
The interior depression of Bohemia is
drained by the Elbe (Labe) and its tributaries
— the Vltava (Moldau), the Loucna (Adler),
the Jizera (Iser), and the Ohfe (Eger) being
the principal branches of the main drainage
system. The basin is bordered by a series of
minor ranges of hUls, of red grits and sand-
stone formation, and by a succession of ter-
races formed of sedimentary rocks successively
Bohemia and the Cechs
deposited upon the slopes of the mountains of
primitive formation.
In the centre of the basin are the Hfebeny
and th# Brdy hills, of Silurian formation, which
abound in mineral treasures, and farther north
are the basaltic cones already referred to.
Piled up masses of scoriae may be found on both
sides of the Elbe, some having elevations of
more than two thousand feet, and upon these the
castles, chapels, convents, and monasteries of
mediaeval Christianity were erected. The de-
composed lava at the base of the hills gives
great fertility to the soil of the country.
Three of the great rivers of Germany — the
Elbe, the Vistula, and the Oder — take their
rise within the limits of the kingdom of Bo-
hemia. The Vistula escapes through Galicia
and Poland, while the Oder flows through Ger-
man Silesia. The Elbe alone, which takes its
rise in a boggy swamp in the Giant mountains,
crosses Bohemia in its course to the German
ocean.
The greatest tributary of the Elbe is the
Vltava (Moldau) which forms the median axis
to which the rivers of the kingdom approach
from both sides. It is the longest of the Bohe-
mian rivers and has been made navigable by
EDMUNDSKLAMM BOCK SCULPTURES.
The Geography of Bohemia 7
a system of canalization inaugurated 1896. Be-
tween Prague and the junction of the Vltava
with the Elbe a minimum depth of seven feet
is maintained, which floats barges of nine hun-
dred tons.
The Vltava joins the Elbe near Schrecken-
stein (Stfekov), which is the Bohemian Lurlei.
A bold rock nearly three hundred feet in height
rises from the banks of the stream, and on its
summit is the ruin of an ancient castle, be-
longing to the Lobkovic family, which was des-
troyed in the eighteenth century.
From Schreckenstein to Pirna in Saxony the
Elbe and its small tributaries from Saxon
Switzerland present some of the most pictur-
esque features to be found in central Europe.
The deep gorges, which have been worn in the
sandstone by the action of the streams, are rich
in curious rock sculptures. The Edmunds-
klamm at Herrnskretschen, near the Saxon
frontier, is perhaps the most interesting.
The single important Bohemian exception to
the Elbe system is the Morava (March) river.
It takes its rise in the Bohemian-Moravian
highland and finds its way to the Black sea
through the Danube. There are many rapid
rivers of commercial consequence that flow
8 Bohemia and the Cechs
from the Sudetic mountains in tlie north and
furnish the water-power for the numerous tex-
tile factories in the neighbourhood of Keichen-
berg (LibSrec).
The few lakes of the country are small and
are found almost entirely in the Bohemian For-
est. There are numerous thermal springs in
the northwest portion of the kingdom which are
connected with the former volcanic activity of
the slopes of the Ore mountains.
Bohemia shares with central Europe a rela-
tively mild climate. The winters are colder in
the southern than in the northern portions of
the country, but nowhere severe. The rainfall
is moderate. At the gate of the Elbe it is
twenty-four inches and at its source forty-one
inches. Prague has an annual rainfall of about
sixteen inches and Budejovice (Budweis), on
the upper Vltava, twenty-five inches. Snow in
the Bohemian Forest often reaches a depth of
twelve feet.
None of the surface of Bohemia is beyond
the limit of forest growth and most of the coun-
try is highly productive. The productive for-
est area is large — about two-fifths of the coun-
try— and the other three-fifths of the area
includes the rich agricultural lands. Accord-
The Geography of Bohemia 9
ing to Julius Caesar, two thousand years ago
Bohemia was one vast forest filled with wild
animals. While the lowlands have been brought
under cultivation, there are stUl beautiful for-
ests of birch, fir, beech, and pine.
Fruits are abundant in Bohemia, chiefly ap-
ples, pears, plums and other stone fruits. In
the region of Litomefice there is an area of
more than two thousand acres devoted to the
cultivation of the vine. Half the area of the
kingdom is devoted to agriculture, the chief
products being wheat, rye, barley, oats, pota-
toes, flax, and hops.
The kingdom is rich in minerals such as iron,
silver, tin, lead, copper, antimony, sulphur,
alum, coal, porcelain earths, and precious and
ornamental stones. In fact salt is about the
only important mineral commodity that is not
found in the country. Small quantities of gold
are taken from the sands of some of the river
beds, but the yield is not large. Bohemia has
the most famous mineral springs of Europe,
including the warm alkaline aperient springs
at Carlsbad and Teplice; the bitter cathartic
springs at Sedlee, Bylany, and Zajecice; the
sulphurous springs at Teplice, and the saline
chalybeate springs at Marienbad and Franz-
10 Bohemia and the Cechs
ensbad. In fact there are thirty-three mineral-
spring health resorts in Bohemia which are
visited annually by several hundred thousand
patients?
In the days of the Romans, when Bohemia
was known as Sylva Gabreta, wild animals
were numerous — wild boar, reindeer, lynx, elk,
aurochs, and roebuck; but these have largely
disappeared. The lynx has almost entirely
died out; the wild boar is becoming scarce;
deer and roebuck are no longer plentiful, al-
though polecats, martins, hares, and foxes are
still abundant- Five hundred different species
of birds are found in the coimtry, including
the golden oriole, blue-jay, woodpecker, and
most of the other feathered varieties found in
central Europe. Numerous crows, magpies,
hawks, and falcons inhabit the country; and
the wild game-birds that are most abundant are
ducks, pheasants, partridges, and blackcock.
The country has numerous insects, including
more than three thousand varieties of beetles.
Cattle rearing is a leading industry, includ-
ing milk-cows, oxen, cattle for slaughter, swine,
and sheep for wool. Poultry also has a large
place for the flesh, the eggs, and the feathers.
The goose is held in the same esteem in Bohe-
The Geography of Bohemia ii
mia as is the turkey in the United States ; and,
in the south-central parts of the country, there
are scores of farms devoted to the rearing of
geese. I photographed one goose-field at Jano-
vice that contained nine hundred fowls. Bee-
culture also occupies a prominent place.
The population of the entire kingdom — Bo-
hemia, Moravia, and Silesia — was nine and a
half million people in 1900, the census of the
present year not being available for this work.
Of this number Bohemia alone had a popula-
tion of six and a third million, Moravia a trifle
under two and a half million, and Silesia nearly
seven hundred thousand. About seventy-two
per cent, of the inhabitants are Bohemians,
twenty-three per cent. Germans, and five per
cent. Hebrews. The increase of the Bohemian
population has been very great during the past
twenty-five years, while there has been a de-
crease in the relative number of German inhab-
itants, and the Jews have scarcely more than
held their own. This increase has been made
in the face of a large emigration. In the dec-
ade 1890 to 1900, one hundred and thirty-two
thousand Bohemians, or one and a fourth per
cent, of the population of 1890, sought homes
in foreign countries. Most of these came to
12 Bohemia and the Cechs
the United States, but not all. Vienna to-day-
has a Cech population of two hundred thou-
sand, and one finds an increasing number of
Bohemians in the great industrial centres of
Saxony and Prussia.
The population of Bohemia is relatively
dense — three hundred and fifteen to the
square mile — although, to except Prague, the
kingdom has no large cities. IWith its immedi-
ate suburbs, Prague has about half a million
people. The city proper is divided into seven
districts. On the right bank of the Vltava are
the Old Town (Stare Mesto), Josefov (the
former ghetto). New Town (Nove Mesto), and
Vysherad (the new quarter). On the right
bank of the river the Small Town (Mala
Strana), Hradcany (the kremlin of Prague)
and Holesovice-Bubny, the industrial part of
the city. The immediate suburbs, which are
separate municipalities, are Karlin, Smichov,
2izkov, and Vinohrady. All but Snnchov are
on the right bank of the Vltava.
Plzen, the second largest city in the kingdom,
has only sixty-eight thousand inhabitants;
Budejovice (Budweis), the third, forty thou-
sand; Aussig (tTsti), the fourth, thirty-seven
thousand, and Eeichenberg (Liberec), the fifth.
The Geography of Bohemia 13
thirty-five thousand. Most of the cities of Bo-
hemia have less than twenty thousand inhab-
itants. This means that, with a population so
dense, and with more than half the country
devoted to agriculture, it has many small cities,
which are the centres of diversified industries.
Turnov, for example, with only thirteen thou-
sand inhabitants, is the centre of an important
linen industry; Litomefioe (Leitmeritz), with
the same number, has important beer indus-
tries; 2atec (Saatz), with sixteen thousand in-
habitants, is the centre of the Bohemian hop
industry, and has machine shops and a variety
of manufactures; and Pardubice, with seven-
teen thousand people, has extensive breweries
and sugar refineries. Certain industries are
concentrated in small towns in particular local-
ities, but the towns of the country are pretty
well distributed over the country, the least pop-
ulated part being the Bohemian Forest in the
south.
The general movement of population is
toward the cities, although the foreign emigra-
tion is still large. The United States receives
the largest number of Bohemians who seek
homes in foreign lands. From twelve to four-
teen thousand come to our country every year,
14 Bohemia and the Cechs
only two per cent, of whom are illiterate,
which is lower than that of Germany; and
almost none of the Bohemians are unskilled
labourer*. They locate for the most part in
the middle west. Of the two hundred and
twenty odd thousand naturalized Bohemians in
the United States and three hundred and ten
thousand American born, one hundred and fif-
teen thousand live in the state of Illinois;
sixty thousand in Nebraska; forty-five thou-
sand in New York; forty-three thousand each
in Wisconsin and Maryland; forty thousand
in Texas; thirty-six thousand in Minnesota,
and thirty-five thousand in Iowa. Chicago is
the largest Bohemian city in America (the sec-
ond Bohemian city in the world), with one hun-
dred thousand inhabitants; there are forty
thousand Bohemians in both New York City
and Cleveland; Onjaha and St. Louis each
have eight thousand ; St. Paul has six thousand,
and Milwaukee five thousand five hundred.
Bohemians came to America with the first set-
tlers. They had been exiled from their country
after the battle of White Mountain. Concern-
ing two of these Protestant exiles we have
records. Augustyn Herman, such an exile,
made the first map of Maryland, copies of
The Geography of Bohemia 15
which, are preserved in the archives at Eich-
mond and in the British Museum. Another
Bohemian exUe, Frederick Filip, took a prom-
inent part in the affairs of New Amsterdam
and is buried in the cemetery of Sleepy Hollow,
near Tarrytown, New York. And there may'
have been others. Hundreds came after the
political disturbances of 1848, and many more
after the war with Prussia in 1866, since which
time the stream has been rather steady. The
Bohemians in America make excellent citizens,
and, as later pointed out, they readily adjust
themselves to our civilization and institutions.^
' For an account of the Bohemians in the United Statgs see:
Pamatky 6esk^ch emigrantfl v Americe. ■ By Thomas Capek.
Omaha, 1907.
CHAPTER n
BEGINliriNGS OF THE BOHEMIAN NATION
When the Bohemians occupied the country — Keltic Boji
and Teutonic Marcomanni — Conflicts with the Avars —
Social habits of the early Bohemian tribes — Chastity and
faithfulness — Village organization — Local government —
The legend of LibuSa — Premysl and the Bohemian dynasty
— Attempts of Charlemagne to conquer Bohemia — Bo-
fivoj I and the introduction of Christianity — The barbaric
Huns — Invasion of Bohemia by the Germans — Reign
of Boleslav the Cruel — Rise of Poland — Bfetislav I, the
restorer of Bohemia — First king of Bohemia — Slavonic
liturgy replaced by the Latin — A meddlesome German
emperor — Question of the celibacy of the Bohemian clergy
— Internal dissensions — Frederick Barbarossa — The lan-
guage question — Pfemysl Otakar — German influence
during the reign of Vdclav I — Conflicts with the Haps-
burgs — German adventurers — Rudolph of Hapsburg —
John of Luxemburg — Prince Charles.
How long Bohemia has been inhabited by
people of the Slavonic race cannot be stated
with any degree of certainty. Palacky and the
older histoi'ians fixed the date as approxi-
mately the year 451 a. d. But more recent an-
thropological and historical studies suggest
that the kingdom had an autochthonous Slavic
population before the Christian era; and that
Slavonic races, the progenitors of the Bohe-
16
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 17
mians of to-day, were the contemporaries of
the Keltic Boji and the Teutonic Marcomanni.
It was formerly supposed, however, that the
Boji, the most eastern branch of the Keltic
race, to whom the country owes its name, were
the earliest inhabitants. They are mentioned
by Livy, Julius Csesar, and other Latin writers,
and the country is sometimes referred to as the
Bojian desert.
The Boji, however, were greatly weakened
by conflicts, at first with the Romans and Da-
cians and later with the Marcomanni, who were
supposed to be the dominant people in the
country up to the middle of the fifth century
of the Christian era. At this time the present
occupants became the masters of Bohemia;
and although they were for several centuries
in almost constant conflict with the Avars from
the east and the Germans from the west, they
seem to have been sufficiently advanced in the
arts of defence to hold their own against these
warlike invaders.
At this period, as Palacky has pointed out,
the Bohemians cultivated the arts of peace;
and when they resorted to arms at all, it
was in self-defence. They cultivated the soil,
reared cattle, and engaged in commerce with
18 Bohemia and the Cechs
neighbouring peoples. Their patient industry
became proverbial. " Social in their habits,
they pressed hospitality to unlawful extremes,
not hesitating to rob their neighbours in order
to entertain their guests. Music and dancing
constituted their pastimes. Family ties were
held sacred. The shades which darkened their
character were their frivolity, their quarrel-
some disposition, and their vindictiveness."
Palacky^ calls attention to the astonishment
of the Greek writers at the extraordinary chas-
tity and faithfulness of the Bohemian women.
It struck them as something superhuman, ha-
bituated as they were to lax sexual standards.
"V^Hiile monogamy was reasonably general from
the earliest historic period, polygamy existed
and continued to be practised long after the
introduction of Christianity.
The elders of the different villages seem to
have been the earliest rulers of the people, and
the political institutions were of the most prim-
itive character. . Ultimately groups of villages
confederated, and the choice of the chief be-
came restricted to the members of certain pow-
erful families ; and eventually it was narrowed
' DSjiny ndrodu (SesWho v Cechdch a v Morav6. By FrantiSek
Palacky. Prague, 1836-1876.
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 19
to the first-born of one particular family, and
the ruler was known as the knez or prince.
The early princes, who held court at the
Vysehrad, were assisted in the government by
twelve advisers, who formed a rude senate;
and, when great issues were to be decided, the
owners of large estates and the heads of clans
were called together in a national parliament.
Before the ninth century serfdom as an insti-
tution did not exist in Bohemia.
The first prince whose name legendary his-
tory has preserved to us is that of Krok, who,
having died without male issue, bequeathed his
possessions to his daughter Libusa, concern-
ing whom the chroniclers wrote : ' ' She was a
wonderful woman among women; chaste in
body, righteous in her morals, second to none
as judge over the people, affable to all and even
amiable, the pride and glory of the female sex,
doing wise and manly deeds." She is said to
have founded the city of Prague and to have
foretold its future greatness.
Libusa ruled wisely and well for some years.
On one occasion, however, in rendering a deci-
sion in a litigation between two noblemen, the
defeated party is reputed to have remarked in
her hearing that " Bohemia was the only coun-
20 Bohemia and the Cechs
try that endured the shame of being ruled over
by a woman." On the following day she called
the representatives of the people together and
asked them to select a man to rule over them.
They insisted, however, that she select a hus-
band whom they would be glad to recognize as
their prince.
Pointiug to the distant hills she is reported
to have said: " Beyond those hills is a small
river called the Belina and on its banks a vil-
lage called Stadic. Near-by. is a farm, and in
one of the fields of that farm is your future
ruler plowing with a yoke of spotted oxen. His
name is Premysl. My horse will lead you to
the spot. Follow him." They followed the
guidance of the horse to the field where a
peasant, plowing with two oxen marked with
spots, responded to the name of Premysl. He
was saluted as their future sovereign, con-
ducted to the Vysehrad, where he married Li-
busa, and became the progenitor of a long line
of Bohemian princes and kings.
For a period of more than two hundred years
we have little more than legends and the names
of ruling princes as historic sources. The in-
troduction of Christianity into Bohemia by
niissionaries from the Greek empire in the east
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 21
and conflicts with Charlemagne and the rulers
of the Eoman empire from the west in the ninth
century give us our earliest reliable historic
accounts.
Charlemagne had visions of world power;
and after subduing the Saxons, he directed his
attention to Bohemia and Moravia. But his
efforts were not attended with a very large
measure of success in Bohemia. During the
reign of his son Louis the Pious (814-840) the
Bohemians may have entered into a sort of
dependent relationship with the Carlo vingian
dynasty, as German historians assert, to bring
peace to their country.
After several unsuccessful attempts on the
part of the Eoman authorities to introduce
Christianity into Bohemia by the way of Ger-
many, it finally found a foothold in the country
from Constantinople by the way of Moravia.
The latter country, inhabited by people of the
same race as the Bohemians, had attained na-
tional unity earlier than the Cechs.
Under the rule of Svatopluk, Moravia became
a country of marked political consequence.
Bofivoj I, the reigning prince of Bohemia,
formed an alliance with Svatopluk and maj-
have become subject to him. While on visits
22 Bohemia and the Cechs
to the Moravian court, both Bofivoj and his
wife Ludmila were received into the Christian
church and they introduced the new religion
into Bohemia. They built many churches, one
of which, that at Levy Hradec, near Prague, is
still in existence.
The story of the introduction of Christianity
will be related in more detail in a subsequent
chapter on religion; but it may be noted in
this connection that its rapid spread in both
Moravia and Bohemia was probably due to the
fact that the Slavonic rather than the Latin
was the accepted language for church service.
Cyril and Methodus, who had been sent by the
Greek emperor Michael of Constantinople as
missionaries to Moravia, had already laboured
among Slavonic peoples in Macedonia; and
they brought with them a Slavonic translation
of the Bible which became the literary stand-
ard of the people.
The great scourges of Europe at this time
were the barbaric Huns. Arnulph, an illegiti-
mate son of Carloman, jealous of the growing
power of Moravia, encouraged the barbarians
to invade that country; and while Svatopluk
resisted such invasions during his lifetime,
the feuds between his sons after his death
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 23
enabled the Magyars to get a foothold in Hun-
gary.
When Svatopluk died in the year 894 the
Moravian kingdom included, besides that mar-
gravite, Hungary, Poland, Silesia, northern
Bohemia, and a large part of northern Ger-
many. All the minor Slav states acknowledged
his supremacy. But the fierce barbarians
" ravaged Germany and the surrounding Sla-
vonic lands with impunity." They conquered
most of Moravia and held it for more than half
a century.
Concerning this event Palacky says: " The
invasion of the Magyars and their establish-
ment in Hungary is one of the most important
events in the history of Europe ; it is the great-
est misfortune that has befallen the Slavonic
world during thousands of years. The Slav-
onic races in the ninth century extended from
the frontiers of Holstein to the coast of the
Peloponnesus, much divided and disconnected,
varying in habits and circumstances, but every-
where able, diligent, and capable of instruction.
In the middle of this extended line a centre had
been formed by Eostislav and Svatopluk, round
which, both by inner impulse and through
the force of external circumstances, the other
24 Bohemia and the Cechs
Slavonic tribes would have grouped them-
selves."
The Bohemians by some stroke of good for-
tune were able to resist the invading bar-
barians. Count Liltzow^ remarks in this con-
nection : " In the complete absence of contem-
porary records it is impossible to ascertain
how Bohemia escaped the fate that befell Mo-
ravia. The ability of the princes of the house
of Pfemysl, who then ruled over Bohemia, may
have largely contributed to preserve the coun-
try from the Magyar invaders. Old legends
tell us that Vratislav, who was about this time
succeeded by his brother Spytihnev, was a glo-
rious prince, so that we may infer that he was
successful in defending the country against its
numerous enemies."
Henry the Fowler, who had subdued the Sla-
vonic tribes of the upper Elbe, invaded Bohe-
mia during the reign of Vaclav I (928-936).
He advanced upon Prague and Vaclav was
forced to pay an annual tribute of six hundred
marks of silver and one hundred and twenty
head of cattle. Vaclav acquired a reputation
for great piety during his lifetime ; and after
' Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count Lutzow. London,
1910.
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 25
his murder, by his brother Boleslav, the church
of Eome canonized him as a saint.
Boleslav I (936-967), surnamed the Cruel, is
characterized by Palacky as " one of the most
powerful monarchs that ever occupied the Bo-
hemian throne." He freed Moravia from the
oppressive rule of the barbaric Huns and re-
conquered a large part of what is now the king-
dom of Bohemia. The consolidation of the
Cech possessions was continued by Boleslav II
(967-999). Prague became a bishopric, but the
price which the Bohemians had to pay for this
ecclesiastic advantage was the surrender of the
Slavonic liturgy and the adoption of the Latin,
which did not cease to be a bone of contention
for centuries.
The rise of Poland involved Boleslav III
(999-1002) and his successors in wars with the
sister state. Temporarily a Polish prince oc-
cupied the throne of Bohemia as Vladivoj
(1002-1003), but with the aid of the Germans
the Poles were driven from Bohemia; and
Jaromir (1003-1012), a brother of Boleslav III,
became the ruler of the country. Family feuds
continued; and with the aid of Henry II his
brother Ulrich (1012-1037) secured the crown.
Bfetislav I (1037-1055), whom Palacky calls
26 Bohemia and the Cechs
the restorer of Bohemia, is described as a
prince possessed of splendid presence and
great qualities — fierce and formidable as a
warrior, but eminently judicious and temperate
in civil administration. He united Bohemia,
Moravia, Silesia, and Poland under one ruler;
and, as Count Liitzow remarks, " the idea of
a West-Slav empire seemed on the point of
being realized; but at this time also Germany-
stepped in to prevent the formation of a power-
ful Slav state on her borders. ' ' Henry III sent
two armies into Bohemia; and although both
were defeated, the Germans were finally vic-
torious, and Bfetislav was forced to surrender
all his possessions in Poland and pay Germany
a war indemnity. During his reign a regular
order of succession to the throne was estab-
lished, in the hope that future family quarrels
might be averted. It was provided that the
oldest son of the house of Pfemysl should in-
herit the Bohemian crown and the second son
become prince of Moravia.
His son Spytihnev (1055-1061) ruled only six
years and he was succeeded by Vratislav II
(1061-1092), who had held the title of duke of
Olomouc. He divided Moravia between his
brothers Otho and Conrad and gave Jaromir,
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 27
the youngest, the see of Prague. But the latter
soon tired of cassock and breviary; and, with
a few congenial young knights, he sought em-
ployment in the army of the king of Poland.
In the struggle between Pope Gregory VII
and Henry IV, emperor of Germany, Vratislav
rendered material assistance to the emperor,
and his forces were the first to scale the leonine
city. Gregory was subdued and Eome was de-
livered to the emperor. In reward for his
services Henry permitted him to be crowned
king of Bohemia, with the reservation that the
honour should be borne only by him and that
his successors should resume the title of
princes. He was a great king, and during his
reign ' ' the arts and sciences were cultivated up
to the full measure of the progress of the age. ' '
The reign of Bfetislav II (1092-1110) was
characterized by a vigorous effort to spread
Christianity; for paganism stiU existed in the
remote parts of the kingdom. Slavonic monks
were likewise driven from their convents and
replaced by Latin monks. After a prolonged
period of civil strife — a commonplace matter
in Bohemian history at this period — Borivoj II
(1110-1120) assumed the reins of government.
After another civil war and the intervention of
28 Bohemia and the Cechs
Germany Vladislav I (1120-1125) held uncer-
tain sway for five years.
Sobeslav I (1125-1140) brought the meddle-
some GeKman emperor to terms. Emperor
Lothair maintained that no Bohemian prince
could ascend to the throne of his country be-
fore having received it as a fief from the em-
peror of Germany; and as Sobeslav refused
to recognize any such claims, the Germans in-
vaded Bohemia and met a decisive defeat soon
after they had crossed the Giant mountains.
Bohemia, in addition, forced Lothair to recog-
nize her right to participate in the election of
subsequent emperors. Thus, remarks Tomek,'
" Bohemia, which hitherto had only had cer-
tain obligations toward its powerful neighbour
the German empire, henceforth also enjoyed
certain rights with regard to Germany."
During the reign of Vladislav II (1140-1173)
a vigorous effort was made to compel the Bo-
hemian clergy to conform to the regulation of
the Roman church in the matter of celibacy;
for, as Count Liitzow has pointed out, the Bo-
hemian clergy, even of the highest rank — such
as Jurata the provost of Prague, Peter the
' DSjepis M&ta Prahy. By Vdclav Vladivoi Tomek. Prague,
1891-1901. 12 vols.
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 29
dean of the cathedral, Hugo the provost of
Vysehrad, and Thomas the dean of the cathe-
dral at Olomouc — were married ecclesiastics.
Vladislav participated in the second crusade
and accompanied the Bohemian contingent of
the army as far as Constantinople.
Uninterrupted struggles between the conten-
tious members of the Premysl dynasty throned
and dethroned Sobeslav II (1173-1189), Con-
rad Otho (1189-1191), Vaclav II (1191-1192),
and Premysl Otakar (1192-1230) during the
half century that followed, not to mention a half
dozen sovereigns who ruled less than twelve
months. Frederick Barbarossa was emperor
of Germany; and, by means fair and other-
wise, he placed Bohemia in a more or less de-
pendent relation with his dominions.
" While Bohemia thus became more depend-
ent on Germany," remarks Count Liitzow,
" the German element also acquired greater
importance in the country itself. As early as
the end of the eleventh century a small German
settlement existed at Prague, which received
certain privileges from Sobeslav II ; the clergy
was largely of German nationality, and per-
haps from dislike to the custom of holding the
religious services in the language of the coun-
30 Bohemia and the dechs
try — a custom that for a long time continued
in Bohemia — favoured the German element in
every way. Another cause of the spread of
the German language and nationality at this
period was the circumstance that all the wives
of the Bohemian princes, with the exception of
the peasant-princess Bozena, were of foreign,
frequently of German, nationality. These prin-
cesses often brought German chaplains and
other dependents in their suite, and the Bohe-
mian nobles also acquired the German lan-
guage, which became to a certain extent the
language of the court; the German princesses
naturally taught their children their own lan-
guage from earliest youth."
The reign of Pfemysl Otakar also marks the
beginning of the struggle with the Eoman pon-
tiffs which was continued through centuries.
Andrew, the bishop of Prague, " claimed abso-
lute immunity from the temporal law-courts,
not only for all ecclesiastics, but also for all
their servants and dependents; and, while de-
manding perfect freedom from taxation for all
church property, he attempted to enforce on
the whole country the payment of church-tithes,
to which only certain estates had hitherto been
liable. He further denied to laymen all right
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 31
of conferring ecclesiastical offices, though he
himself appears to have accepted investiture
from King Otakar." The king and people
naturally refused to recognize the claims of
Andrew and he was forced to leave the city.
Grerman influence continued in Bohemia
during the reign of Vaclav I (1230-1253). A
German colony was brought to the Old Town
(Stare Mesto) of Prague and given a larger
measure of autonomy than was enjoyed by the
Bohemians. The Germans were made inde-
pendent of the Bohemian law courts and they
were permitted to enclose their settlement with
fortifications. Similar settlements of Germans
were established at Brno (Briinn) and Jihlava
(Iglau) in Moravia. It was during the reign
of Vaclav that a horde of Tatar barbarians
invaded the country, but they did not get be-
yond Moravia. They sustained a crushing de-
feat at the hands of the Bohemians at Olomouc,
which, as Palacky remarks, decided the fate of
Moravia and Bohemia, and perhaps of Europe.
Pfemysl Otakar II (1253-1278) continued
the policy of German colonization. He also
organized a crusade against the heathen Prus-
sians, defeated them in several great battles,
and forced them to accept Christianity. In a
32 Bohemia and the dechs
war with Hungary he won both territory and
• renown; but having contested the election of
Rudolph of Hapsburg, allied German and Hun-
garian armies invaded his possessions, and an
insurrection having broken out among the Bo-
hemian nobility, he did not risk a battle but
sued for peace. He was forced to renoimce his
claims to Styria, Austria, Carinthia, Oarniola,
and Istria, as well as certain territories in
western Bohemia, and he was permitted to re-
tain Bohemia and Moravia merely as fiefs of
the German empire. The subsequent interfer-
ence of Rudolph with the affairs of Bohemia
induced him to strike a blow for freedom, but
the result was disastrous. His forces were
defeated and he died " fighting desperately."
Concerning the disastrous ending of one
of Bohemia's greatest kings. Count Liitzow
writes : " The fact that Otakar had, by the priv-
ileges he granted the towns, alienated many
of the powerful Bohemian nobles, who there-
fore deserted him in the hour of peril, was un-
doubtedly one of the principal causes of his
downfall. Another still more potent consid-
eration was the question of nationality. Ota-
kar was, justly or unjustly, accused of favour-
ing the Germans to the disadvantage of his own
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 33
countrymen, and he had thus become unpopu-
lar with the Bohemians. The stimulus of na-
tional pride, which has sometimes animated the
Bohemians to most heroic deeds, did not there-
fore incite them to rally round their king, whom
many of them considered nearly as much a Ger-
man, as his opponent."
During the minority of Vaclav II (1278-
1305), the five-year old son of Otakar, Otho of
Brandenburg acted as guardian and nominal
ruler of the country ; but he misused his power
shamefully and flooded the country with Ger-
man adventurers. The nobility finally turned
against him and forced him to promise to with-
draw his foreign mercenaries from the country
within three days. But the state of anarchy
which his guardianship introduced caused the
peasants to neglect their farms and flee to the
mountains for protection; and the winter of
1281-82, being one of great severity, half a mil-
lion people are said to have perished from
famine.
The reign of Vaclav III (1305-1306), the last
of the Pfemysls, was cut short by an assas-
sin. As he died without issue the Bohemians
were disposed to select his brother-in-law,
Henry, duke of Carinthia, as his successor ; but
34 Bohemia and the Cechs
the German emperor declared that, as Bohemia
was a feudal dependency of his empire, the
selection of a ruler, in the absence of a lawful
heir, rested with him ; and he gave the kingdom
to his son Rudolph of Hapsburg (1306-1307).
To enforce his claim he sent a large army to
Bohemia; and, to legalize it, he married Ru-
dolph to Elizabeth, the widow of Vaclav II.
The new king surrounded himself with German
favourites, and he would have faced deposition
at the' hands of the discontented Bohemians but
for his timely death.
The choice of a successor fell to Henry of
Carinthia (1307-1310), not without a contest
with the emperor of Germany; but Henry
proved an altogether incompetent ruler, and
John of Luxemburg (1310-1346), the only son
of Henry, emperor of Germany, was selected
by the Bohemians as their ruler. He married
Elizabeth, the second daughter of Vaclav II,
and in 1311 they were crowned at Prague as
king and queen of Bohemia.
John, however, proved something of a knight-
errant and adventurer, and he gave more of his
time to the feuds and political broils in the
other countries of Europe than to those of his
own kingdom. His continued absence from Bo-
Beginnings of the Bohemian Nation 35
hernia and Ms constant demands for money and
soldiers to carry on his foreign exploits, to-
gether with the civil wars instigated by the
Bohemian nobles, brought the country to the
verge of ruin. A local historian remarks : " In
the absence of some strong hand to govern, the
strong oppressed the weak. The land was in-
fested with robbers, who plundered the inhab-
itants without let or hindrance. Sometimes
whole villages were destroyed, the inhabitants
scattered in all directions, many of whom per-
ished in the woods from starvation. And King
John himself became a public robber. His own
sources of income having been drained to the
last farthing, he robbed the churches of their
ornaments; and, stealing the crown and the
crown jewels from the palace, he sold them,
using the money for his own private expenses. ' '
During the last years of his reign John en-
trusted the government of the country to his
son Charles, who, although young in years, dis-
played extraordinary talent for executive du-
ties and Bohemia made marked progress under
his regency. John spent his closing years in
Luxemburg and was killed in the great conflict
between the English and French at the battle
of Crecy, while fighting on the side of the
36 Bohemia and the Cechs
French king. Wlien the English king heard of
his death he is said to have exclaimed, " The
crown of chivalry has fallen to-day ; never was
any one eqftal to this king of Bohemia." But
the people of his kingdom could not have re-
gretted his death, for it ridded them of an in-
competent and extravagant ruler and brought
to the throne one of the ablest sovereigns that
had inherited the dynasty of Pf emysl. The next
chapter will tell the story of this remarkable
man, known in history as Charles I as king of
Bohemia, and Charles IV as emperor of Ger-
many, in which twofold capacity he ruled.
CHAPTER III
PEKIOD OF CHABLES IV
The golden age of Bohemian history — The quahties of Charles
— His early training — National sympathies — Recognition
of the Bohemian language — Foundation of the university
of Prague — Artistic interests — Karluv T;^ — Prague en-
larged — Beginnings of Carlsbad — The Golden Bull —
The movement for church reform — Forerunners of Master
John Hus — Conrad Waldhausen — Milifi of Krom6fi2e — ■
Matthew of Janov — Thomas of Stitn;^' — ; Commercial pros-
perity during the reign of Charles — Reforms inaugurated
by \he great emperor-king — Personal characteristics.
The reign of King Charles I (1346-1378),
who as emperor of Germany was known as
Charles IV, was in most respects the golden
age of Bohemian history. He enlarged the
boundaries of the kingdom ; established higher
courts of law and reorganized the administra-
tion of justice; founded the university of
Prague; enlarged Prague by the addition of
Nove Mesto; founded the city of Carlsbad;
built the castle of Karluv Tyn as a depository
for the crown jewels and treasures of the king-
dom ; surrounded himself with artists who de-
veloped the Prague school of painting, and
gave a powerful impetus to the Cech language
37
38 Bohemia and the Cechs
which had fallen into disuse since the days of
Pf emysl Otakar I.
Palacky * says of him: " Charles was unlike
his father in many respects; he inherited
neither his qualities nor his faults. John, chiv-
alrously brave and somewhat vain, was mostly
guided by his temperament, which, though viva-
cious and inconstant, was generally intent on
noble purposes. He loved warfare above all
things, both in good earnest and in sport; he
sought out wars and tournaments ; cared more
for glory than for gain ; succeeded in conquer-
ing more than he was able to retain. He at-
tempted great deeds, but his want of thrift
often drove him to petty acts. His learned
and serious son, on the other hand, showed
everjrwhere the most entire self-possession,
and in all matters of business acted according
to a fixed plan and with calculation; he also
fought bravely, but he preferred to obtain his
purpose by peaceful negotiation. Orderly in
financial matters, he showed exceptional talent
in the art of government, though his military
capacities were not great ; he obtained far more
by the arts of diplomacy than he ever could
' DSjiny ndrodu iSesk^ho v Cech&h a na MoravS. By Fran-
ti§ek Palack^. Prague, 1836-1876.
Period of Charles IV 39
have done by the force of arms. John hardly
disguised the fact that he had little sympathy
for the land and people of Bohemia; love for
them seems, on the other hand, to have been
the one passion of Charles. ' '
Charles had been educated in France, and he
spoke the French, German, and Bohemian lan-
guages with equal facility. His predilection,
however, was for the Bohemian ; and, while he
permitted the use of either the German or the
Bohemian in the town assemblies, he refused
official appointments to Germans who could not
speak the national language, and he required
his German subjects to have their children in-
structed in the Bohemian. He also secured
from the pope permission to use the national
language in all ecclesiastical services in certain
monasteries; and in a dozen other ways he
gave an impetus to the development of the Bo-
hemian language and literature which bore
precious fruits during the period of John Hus
and the great moral revolution.
Early in his reign (1348) he founded the uni-
versity of Prague which antedated the organi-
zation of the German universities by more than
half a century, and was the first higher insti-
tution of learning in that part of Europe.
40 Bohemia and the Cechs
Charles may himself have been a student at
the university of Paris during his residence in
France, as some of his biographers assert, and
he certainly was familiar with the character
of the university of Bologna. The archbishop
of Prague was selected as the chancellor of the
new institution, and learned men from France
and Italy, in addition to Bohemian and German
scholars who had studied in these countries,
were offered posts in the university. It grew
rapidly in popularity, and at the time of the
death of Charles it enrolled more than seven
thousand students. A fuller account of this
higher institution of learning will be found in
a subsequent chapter on education in Bohemia.
Another monument which bears testimony to
the artistic interests of the emperor-king is the
noble castle of Karluv Tyn on the banks of the
Mze river, twenty miles south of Prague. It
is located on an isolated rock of jasper, a thou-
sand feet above the river, and was built for the
better protection of the crown jewels and the
charters of Bohemia. It was sumptuously dec-
orated with precious stones and mural paint-
ings, and combined, as Mr. Maurice ^ has re-
* The story of Bohemia. By C. Edward Maurice. New York,
1896.
Period of Charles IV 41
marked, " the memories of Charles' work as
king, as moral reformer, and as patron of art. ' '
The paintings in the castle, in the emperor's
apartments, and in the chapel of St. Catherine,
as well as the other tasteful artistic and archi-
tectural embellishments, recall the encourage-
ment which Charles gave to the fine arts of his
time.
Prague was raised into imperial importance
by the founding of a new suburb (Nove Mesto)
to meet the growing needs of the capital and
accommodate the large number of students at-
tracted to the city by the fame of the univer-
sity. He also founded Carlsbad (Karlovy
Vary), the celebrated watering place in west-
ern Bohemia. Tradition has it that, while on
a hunting expedition, the emperor-king discov-
ered the hot mineral springs, caused the waters
to be examined by the professors in the medical
faculty of the university of Prague, and built
for himself a castle on the spot that he might
enjoy their salutary effects.
In 1356 Charles published his famous Golden
Bull, by the terms of which he attempted to
settle the relations between the emperor and
the electors. He recognized that the ills of the
preceding century were largely due to the im-
42 Bohemia and the Cechs
certainty of the electorate and the doubtful
claims of rival aspirants. He accordingly fixed
the electorate on a clear 'basis, defined the lands
which gawe the privilege of voting, and as-
serted the right of the electors to choose the
emperor without waiting for the confirmation
of their choice by the pope. He also secured
for the king of Bohemia a more favourable
position among the electors of the empire and
asserted the right of the Bohemians to choose
their own king.
But the Grolden Bull met with keen displeas-
ure from the pope and it chilled for a period
the cordial relations that had hitherto existed
between the Roman see and Prague. German
historians have unduly magnified the subser-
viency of Charles to Rome. Count Liitzow^
discounts this judgment by the firmness which
Charles displayed at this time, as well as his
opposition to the demands of the papal dele-
gate for the collection of tithes for the benefit
of the papal court. He adds: " Charles called
on the bishops to pay greater attention to the
morals and conduct of their clergy, and even
threatened to seize the ecclesiastical revenues
* Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count Lutzow. New
York and London, 1910.
Period of Charles IV 43
should they not be more worthily employed.
Though the momentary estrangement between
pope and emperor may have been one of
the motives of the energetic language which
Charles used, there is no doubt that the em-
peror, a man of earnest and unaffected piety,
seriously desired to reform the habits and
morals of the clergy. ' '
It was during the reign of Charles that the
movement for church reform gathered force;
and his encouragement to the teaching and the
preaching of reformers like Conrad Wald-
hausen, Milic of Kromefize, Matthew of Janov,
and Thomas of Stitny — " the truest and most
obedient sons of the church, ' ' as Baron Helf ert
characterizes them — that the ground was pre-
pared for John Hus and the great moral revo-
lution of the next generation.
Conrad was an Augustinian monk of German
parentage whose first pastorate was at Lito-
mefice. He became pastor of the Tyn church
in Prague in 1364 and held this post up to the
time of his death five years later. In his ser-
mons he denounced the extravagances of the
citizens and the corruption of the clergy, and
exhorted the return to the simple and pious
life of the early Christians. He attacked with
44 Bohemia and the Cechs
great severity Augustinian and Dominican
monks^ as well as the immorality of the laymen ;
but Chai^Jes approved of his preaching and
gave him protection. A contemporary, Benes
of Veitmil, says of him : " A German by birth,
a man of great learning and greater eloquence,
he saw when he came to Bohemia all men given
up to luxury. He preached dauntlessly against
usurers and other unjust possessors of prop-
erty, and especially against religious persons
of both sexes who had been received into their
orders through simonical practices. As, in
consequence thereof, many such persons, con-
science stricken by his pious sermons, obtained
dispensation from the holy apostolic curia, and
others refused to give up their children to the
orders with the stipulated sums of money, all
the brethren of the begging orders rose up
against him, and loaded him with manifold
abuse. But he, a man of perfect love, endured
it all with equanimity for God's sake."
Milic of Kromerize, who succeeded Conrad
as preacher at the Tyn church, was a Moravian
by birth who had been educated in Italy. He
held in turn the post of secretary to Margrave
John of Moravia and Emperor Charles, and
later became canon of the church of St. Vitus,
Period of Charles IV 45
the present cathedral of Prague. But in 1363
' ' he resigned all valuable preferments in order
to follow the Lord Christ in poverty and hu-
mility." He seems to have provoked even
greater enmity on the part of the monks than
Conrad had done ; and, in the hope of silencing
him, errors of dogma were charged against
him. He journeyed to Rome to defend himself
against the charges of his enemies, and the
pontiff " evidently recognizing the purity of
his intentions " dismissed the charges. He
became so popular as a preacher and such great
crowds flocked to the Tyn church to hear his
denunciations of * * the pride and avarice of the
clergy," that he was forced to repeat his ser-
mons from four to five times each day.
A second charge of heresy was brought
against him by the begging friars, and while
waiting for the final decision of the pope he
died in 1374. Palacky says of him : " In Milic
that religious thought and feeling, which have
always distinguished the Bohemians, found its
embodiment. He stirred the spirit of the peo-
ple to its depths, and first caused it to rise in
those waves which, at a later time and with the
cooperation of new elements, grew to be the
billows of a great storm. ' '
46 Bohemia and the Cechs
Matthew of Janov was the son of a Bohe-
mian nobleman who had studied at the univer-
sities of Prague and Paris and he seems to
have taken his master's degree at the latter
institution. In 1381 he became a canon of the
cathedral of Prague ; and through his writings
— and notably his essay on the Abomination
in the holy place — he exercised wide influence.
He bewailed the worldliness of the clergy and
the neglect of the Bible; he rebuked the mon-
astic orders ; he protested against the worship
of pictures, the invocation of the saints, and
the importance attached to relics ; and he urged
that the gospel should more generally be
preached in the vernacular. Some of his views
he was forced to recant at a diocesan synod
held in 1389, and he was suspended for six
months from ministerial functions.
Thomas of Stitny, who is sometimes men-
tioned as the father of Bohemian literature,
was a philosopher and man of letters as well
as a religious reformer. He was educated at
the university of Prague and was deeply in-
fluenced by the writings and preaching of
Milic. His purpose, he declared, was to bring
the truth so vividly before the minds of his
hearers that they might learn to shun evil and
Period of Charles IV 47
be inspired to follow the good. The national
language was his medium both in writing and
preaching, for he argued that it was unwise to
attempt to fence up Christian teaching with a
Latin wall. When his enemies attacked him
for his use of the Bohemian language for re-
ligious purposes, he replied, " St. Paul wrote
his epistles to the Jews in Hebrew; to the
Greeks in Greek; why, then, should I, being a
Bohemian, hesitate to write to my countrymen
in Bohemian? I will write in Bohemian, for
God loves a Bohemian as well as he does a
Latinist." The works of Thomas of Stitny
consist of twenty-five pamphlets on religious
and ethical subjects. They were widely read
during the golden age of Bohemian history and
exerted a powerful influence upon the develop-
ment of Bohemian literature in that day and
on the tendencies of religious reforms in the
next generation.
In addition to these and other reforms.,
Charles also gave considerable attention to the
commercial prosperity of his possessions. Bo-
hemia had been for a long while infested by
robbers who rendered commerce unprofitable
and the highways unsafe. He policed the coun-
try and attacked the strongholds of the robber-
48 Bohemia and the 6echs
knights and executed some of the most notori-
ous leaders. The story is told that one of these
robber-ki^ights was John of Smoyno, who oc-
cupied a castle at Zampach. He had formerly
served in the royal army and Charles had given
him a golden chain for his bravery. After
Zampach had been stormed, Charles is said to
have thrown the rope around John's neck at
the time of his execution, remarking that "it
was not only golden chains that he had to give
to his friends."
Charles died in 1378, and his death marks
the end of the golden age of Bohemian history.
He may have made a better Bohemian king
than German emperor; but his contributions
to the refinements of life and his amelioration
of the social conditions of his people entitle
him to high rank as a benefactor of mankind.
He was buried in the cathedral at Hradcany in
Prague, which he had rebuilt and enlarged.
Concerning the personal characteristics of the
great emperor-king a Bohemian historian
writes: " Charles was rather small and thick-
set; he was somewhat round-shouldered, his
head and neck thrust forward; his face was
broad, his features coarse, his eyes large. He
dressed in plain black broadcloth, without any
' Period of Charles IV 49
ornamentation whatever, his coat being but-
toned up to his chin. His favourite pastime
was whittling. He whittled on all occasions,
even when sitting as judge and listening to the
most serious cases. At times it seemed that
he was paying more attention to his knife than
to the pleadings of the counsel; but the deci-
sions that he gave proved that he had not lost
a word. In the management of his domestic
affairs, Charles was economical to stinginess;
but in great undertakings he showed a gen-
erosity truly princely. In affairs of state he
listened patiently to his counsellors, but he
generally acted according to his own mind, and
a decision once reached was held as final. Al-
though five centuries have passed since the
father of Bohemia lived — and since that time
fearful storms and changes have come over
the country — yet, at the present time, no one
can travel over the land without meeting on
every side works that perpetuate the name of
Charles IV, rendering it dear to every Bohe-
mian heart." ^
' The story of Bohemia. By Frances Gregor. Cincinnati and
New York, 1895.
CHAPTEE IV
JOHN HITS AND THE MORAL EEVOLUTION
Beginnings of the reign of V^lav IV — Church scandals —
Burden of taxation for churches — The schism in the Roman
church and its effect on Bohemia — Rival pontiffs — Sale of
indulgences — Opposition to indulgences in Bohemia —
Appearance of John Hus — His early life and training —
The writings of Wycliffe — The Bethlehem chapel — Jerome
of Prague — Reputed miracles — Chronic antagonism be-
tween Germans and Bohemians — The university as a factor
in the contest — Decree of Kutnd Hora and departure of
German masters and students — Conflicts with the Roman
pontiffs — Rival popes — Venders of indulgences — Hus ex-
oommunicated and Prague laid under interdict — Hus in
exUe — Sigismund and the council of Constance — Hus
promised a safe-conduct — The trial and martyrdom of Hus
— Jerome of Prague also burned as a heretic — Effect of the
news on Bohemia — Beginnings of the Hussite wars —
The question of communion in both kinds — Death of Vd.-
clav and political parties — TJtraquists and Taborites —
The calixtines — Nigholas of Husinec — The crusade against
Bohemia and John ZiJka — Qualities pf the great Bohemian
leader — Invading armies repulsed by ZiXka — The Articles of
Prague — Council of Basel grants religious autonomy to
the Bohemians — Momentary peace — The guardianship of
Ladislav.
Vaclav IV (1378-1419) inherited both the
kingdom of Bohemia and the empire of Ger-
many, as well as the wise counsellors of his
father; but he failed signally to rise to the re-
sponsibilities which the troubled conditions of
the times forced him to face. His ability was so
so
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 51
distinctly iaferior to that of Ms illustrious
father that among the nobility, at least, he soon
lost esteem and confidence. " A great name,"
as Mr. Maurice ^ has remarked, " is a very dan-
gerous inheritance; and when that inherit-
ance implies an obligation on the heir to carry
out a great work begun by his predecessor,
the tradition generally involves failure and
disgrace. In Vaclav, as in so many sons of
great rulers, some of the qualities which had
secured his father's success were conspicu-
ously wanting. Charles had known when to
insist, and when to abstain from insisting, on
the reforms which he had most at heart. He
had known how f a!r to go in the punishment, of
offences, and when to pardon graciously ; above
all, he had known how to respect, and even to
utUize, the abilities of his opponents. None of
these lessons of statesmanship could Vaclav
ever learn; he was absolutely without self-
restraint or sense of proportion; and, conse-
quently, though his aims were generally those
of a wise and patriotic ruler, he frequently
used the methods of a cruel tyrant."
The scandals and discords occasioned by the
* The Btoiy of Bohemia. By C. Edmund Maurice. New York
and London, 1896.
52 Bohemia and the Cechs
residence of the Eoman pontiffs at Avignon
and the lowered moral tone of the clergy, which
ultimately developed into the Hussite wars,
had cause(f Charles no little anxiety during the
last years of his reign and he had repeatedly
called the attention of the ecclesiastics to the
need of moral reform within the church. That
this need was augmented by the schism which
began almost simultaneously with the accession
of Vaclav there can be no reasonable ques-
tion of doubt. Count Liitzow,^ a Bohemian his-
torian, says : "At no time, indeed, was such a
reformation more necessary. Warfare, tour-
naments, hunting, and gambling were widely
spread among the clergy, and immorality was
almost universal, the law of celibacy having
fallen into complete neglect."
Baron Helfert,^ who writes from a strongly
Eoman Catholic point of view, says that " the
immorality of the clergy was so great that in
some parishes it was considered desirable that
the priests should live in concubinage." Dur-
ing the seventy years that the popes lived at
Avignon they intrigued constantly in the inter-
* Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count Ltitzow. London
and New York, 1910.
2 Hus und BBeronymus. By Josef Alexander Helfert. Prague,
1853.
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 53
ests of France, the Avignon court at one time
having loaned the king of France three and a
half million guldens. After the schism tremen-
dous monetary demands were made on the lands
which remained obedient to the respective pon-
tiffs, and this money was spent ia the main for
■ secular and political purposes.
The burden of taxation in Bohemia and else-
where became intolerable, and " no church of-
fice or church benefice, no exemption or dis-
pensation, no hope of future preferment, no,
not even forgiveness of sins, could be gained
without cash payment."^ -^neas Sylvius,^
who later became Pope Pius II, it will be re-
called, declared at the council of Constance,
" Nothing does the court of Eome give with-
out payment, inasmuch as the very laying on
of hands, and the gifts of the Holy Ghost, are
for sale."
The schism, it will be recalled, had occurred
shortly before the death of Charles. He had
induced the German princes to recognize Ur-
ban VI as the legitimate pope and to renounce
all connection with Clement VII and the car-
^ A short history of Germany. By Ernest F. Henderson.
New York, 1908.
^ MneiB Sylvii De Bohemorum, et ex his Imperatorum aliquot
Origine ac Gestis. Basel, 1575.
54 Bohemia and the Cechs
dinals who supported him. Vaclav adhered
to the policy of his father and tried to induce
the king of France to join with him in a move-
ment looking to the deposition of both claim-
ants and the election of a new pontiff. Boni-
face IX had succeeded Urban as pope at Eome
in 1389 and Benedict XIII had become the suc-
cessor of Clement as the pope at Avignon in
1394. Boniface died in 1406 and was succeeded
first by Innocent VII and then by Gregory XII.
Since neither the pope at Eome nor the pope
at Avignon would yield, and the schism was
giving Hus and the Bohemian reformers an
excellent opportunity to set forth doctrines at
variance with those of the Eoman church, the
idea of an international ecclesiastical council
was suggested. In the early days of the Chris-
tian church, it was urged, councils were the
highest authorities in all matters concerning
religion, but that gradually the authority of
the councils had been usurped by the popes.
After some hesitation the cardinals called a
councU to meet at Pisa in 1409. The council
deposed both Gregory and Benedict and elected
Alexander V, who died soon afterwards and
was succeeded by John XXIII, ' ' a man whose
past had been open to the gravest reproach."
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 55
As both Gregory and Benedict refused to ab-
dicate, the church now had three popes and
the problem was enormously complicated, since
each claimed to be the true vicegerent of God
and the legitimate successor of St. Peter, and
each hurled terrible maledictions against his
rivals. John XXIII characterized Gregory XII
as " a heretic, a demon, and the antichrist ' ' ;
Gregory obligingly bore similar testimony re-
specting John, and both united in pronouncing
Benedict " an impostor and a schismatic."
Europe became the theatre of war and rapine ;
for the rival popes sought to crush one another,
not merely by the use of spiritual bulls, but
by the force of temporal arms. The sale of
indulgences to provide the sinews for the spiri-
tual warfare of the rival pontiffs served even
more to alienate the Bohemians, who had been
greatly disappointed because the council of
Pisa had been prorogued without attempting
to regulate the papal finances and reform the
abuses of the clergy.
It was at this time that John Hus ^ appeared
' The literature of Hus is very large. In English, see Count
Liitzow's Life and times of Master John Hus (London and New
York, 1909), the most comprehensive and recent work, and Albert
Henry Wratislaw's John Hus: the commencement of resistance
to the papal authority on the part of the inferior clergy (London,
1882). In German, see Baron Helfert's Hus und Heronymus
56 Bohemia and the Cechs
on the stage of Bohemian history as the leader,
of the movement for moral reform. Hus was
born in the market-town of Husinec in south-
ern Bohemia in 1373 of poor but honest and
ambitious parents. His father died when he
was young. After completing his elementary
and secondary studies in the provincial schools,
he repaired to Prague, where he took his mas-
ter's degree in the university in 1396. Upon
the completion of his university studies he en-
tered the service of the church and soon
attained distinction. His fame attracted the
attention of the king and he was selected as
the confessor of Queen Sophia. In spite of the
fact that he had studied with some care the
writings of Wycliffe, the English reformer, he
was unstinted in his devotion to the church of
Eome. In 1393, at the time of the jubilee at
Prague, he took part in the procession in order
to share in the absolution, and gave the last
four grosohen that he possessed to a confessor.
The antagonistic attitude of Hus to the
church of Rome dates from the year 1402, when,
as preacher of the Bethlehem chapel, he began
(Prague, 1853); Wilhelm Berger's Johannis Hus und Konig
Sigmund (Augsburg, 1871); J. Friedrich's Die Lehre von Hus
(Ilegensburg, 1862). In French, Ernst Denis' Hus et la guerre
dea Hussites.
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 57
to attack the morals of the clergy. The Beth-
lehem chapel, which played such an important
role in the moral reformation movement, had
been founded and endowed ten years before by
a Bohemian patriot who stipulated that its use
should be confined to the preaching of the word
of God in the mother-tongue. As already noted,
the moral condition of Prague at this time
could not well have been worse. The king, the
nobles, the prelates, the clergy, and the citizens,
we are told, ' ' wallowed in the most abominable
vices " and " indulged without restraint in
avarice, pride, drunkenness, lewdness, and
every profligacy." Against these vices the
preaching of Hus came as a strong reaction,
" like an incarnate conscience."
The appearance at Prague two years later
(1402) of two English theologians, James and
Conrad of Canterbury, who were graduates of
Oxford and disciples of Wycliffe, had a pro-
found influence on the subsequent career of
Hus. He had already learned considerable
about the teachings of the English reformer
through Anna, the sister of King Vaclav who
had married King Richard of England, and
Jerome of Prague, who had spent some time
in England, where he had studied the doc-
58 Bohemia and the Cechs
trines of "VVycliffe at first hand. From this
time the preaching of Hus partakes more of
the authority of the Bible and less of the Eo-
man hierarchy.
Another event shortly happened which made
a keen impression on the mind of the Bohemian
reformer. Miracles, it was alleged, were being
performed in a village church on the lower
Elbe, where a drop of Christ's blood was cur-
ing all sorts of ills, and the church was visited
by thousands of pilgrims. Doubt having been
cast on its efficacy, the archbishop of Prague
appointed a committee of three — one of whom
was Hus — to visit the village and ascertain
the truthfulness of the reputed miracles. The
report was unfavourable, and the archbishop
issued a mandate requiring all priests to pub-
lish to their congregations the episcopal pro-
hibition of pilgrimages to the village under
pain of excommunication. But the incident
weakened unmistakably the Bohemian reform-
er's faith in pilgrimages and other practices of
the Roman church.
The chronic antagonism between the Bohe-
mians and the Germans, after all the chief fac-
tor in the moral revolution and the Hussite
wars, at this time became acute. Hus had been
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 59
made dean of the philosophical faculty of the
university of Prague in 1401 and the next year
he was made rector of the university. The
administration of the university was entrusted
to officials selected by representatives of the
four nations into which students and teachers
were organized. These nations were (1) the
Bohemian nation, which included students and
masters from Bohemia, Moravia, Hungary,
and the other Slavic lands; (2) the Bavarian
nation, which included those from Bavaria, Aus-
tria, Swabia, Franconia, and the Ehinelands;
(3) the Polish nation, including those from
Poland, Silesia, Eussia, and Lithuania, and (4)
the Saxon nation, including those from Saxony,
Thuringia, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark.
Each nation had one vote in the administration
of the institution, which made it easy for the
foreigners to combine and defeat the wishes of
the Bohemians.
Such a circumstance was a contributing fac-
tor to the long chain of incidents that led up
to the Hussite wars. At the conclusion of the
rectorship of Hus, Walter Harasser, a German,
was selected to direct the destinies of the ship
of learning. He at once called an academical
meeting and presented for its examination
60 Bohemia and the Cechs
forty-five articles extracted from the writings
of Wycliffe. A stormy debate followed, in
wMcli Hus and the Bohemians defended the
articles ; but they were condemned by the com-
bined votes of the foreigners, and the members
of the university were forbidden to teach them.
The condemnation, however, remained prac-
tically a dead letter ; for in his university lec-
tures and in his sermons at the Bethlehem
chapel Hus continued to present his views of
the essential doctrines of the Christian relig-
ion much as he had done before. But the con-
denmation led to the organization of two well-
defined parties within academic circles — the
one headed by Hus and demanding church re-
form and the other led by the Germans and
justifying the alleged abuses of the Eoman
church.
As early as 1385 the Bohemians had attacked
the policy of appointing foreigners to the chief
offices in the university ; but the crisis came in
1409, when King Vaclav, yielding to the na-
tional party, by the decree of Kutna Hora
changed the system of voting so that hence-
forth the Bohemians were given three votes
and the combined foreign nations only one.
Thereupon five thousand German students and
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 61
professors, with, a sprinkling of sympathizers
among the other foreign nations, left Prague
in a body and went to Saxony, where they
founded the German university at Leipzig.
The reform party in Bohemia was strength-
ened by the exodus. Hus was again chosen rec-
tor of the university, which gave him great
influence and a large field in which to promul-
gate his doctrines. But his teachings were by
no means pleasing to Alexander V, whom the
council of Pisa had that year elected as Roman
pontiff. The . pope authorized the archbishop
of Prague to prevent preaching in private
chapels and to proceed against those who
" read the writings or taught the opinions of
"Wycliffe." Two hundred volumes pertaining
to the doctrines of the Oxford reformer were
burned and the archbishop soon afterwards
excommunicated Hus for continuing to preach.
But the king and the queen were indignant be-
cause of the acts of the archbishop, and he was
ordered to indemnify the owners of the des-
troyed books. Meanwhile the king seized some
of the ecclesiastical revenues, and wrote a men-
acing letter to the Roman cardinals in which
he stated that if the Holy College did not find
some prompt means of settling the religious
62 Bohemia and the Cechs
quarrels in Bohemia that he and the lords of
his kingdom would find a way of termina-
ting the ijiatter in accordance with their own
views.
Matters in Italy at this time led Hus to take
the step which ultimately brought him to the
stake at Constance. John XXIII had been
driven from Rome by King Ladislav of Naples,
who was one of the adherents of Gregory, one
of the rival popes. John placed Ladislav under
the ban; pronounced him " a perjurer, a
schismatic, a reviler, a heretic, a traitor, and
a conspirator," and proclaimed a crusade
against him. But as funds were required for
the holy war, he sent out venders of indul-
gences to provide the means for subduing Lad-
islav. Their arrival in Bohemia at once pro-
voked an outburst of denunciation.
Count Liitzow says of this episode: " Pre-
ceded by drummers they entered the city, and
established themselves in the market-place.
They called on all passers-by to contribute
money or goods in exchange for indulgences.
The sale of indulgences had been one of the
abuses which the Bohemian church reformers
had from the first most strenuously opposed.
Hus, in his Bethlehem chapel, spoke strongly
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 63
against the granting of these indulgences,
which, he said, were given to aid in the slaugh-
ter of the soldiers of Ladislav, who could but
obey their king. At the same time he dis-
claimed all intention of taking sides in the
quarrel between the two popes. ' '
The matter of the sale of indulgences was
brought before the university by Hus and Je-
rome of Prague, and after a stormy debate the
practice was declared to be unchristian. The
pope renewed his decree of excommunication
against Hus and " all true Christians were for-
bidden to have any intercourse with him ; food
and drink were to be supplied to him only under
paiu of excommunication ; all religious serv-
ices were to be suspended in every town which
he entered ; Christian burial was to be refused
him, and the Bethlehem chapel was to be des-
troyed. ' '
The city of Prague having been laid under
interdict and the churches closed, King Va-
clav asked Hus to retire for a period in the
hope that an end might be brought to the con-
flict. Hus left Prague and went to his native
town for a period, not, as he asserts, " to deny
the truth, for which I am willing to die, but
because impious priests forbid the preaching
64 Bohemia and the Cechs
of it. ' ' The Eoman church, he maintained, was
still to him the spouse of Christ and the pope
the repre^ntative and vicar of God. What he
opposed was the abuse of authority and not the
principle.
Hus spent nearly twenty months in volun-
tary exile, during which time he occupied him-
self in preaching in villages, fields, and forests,
and in literary occupations. He wrote fifteen
works in the Bohemian language and several in
Latin, among which were his treatise on simony
and the famous postil. His contributions to
the development of Bohemian literature during
his exile were significant. He purified the na-
tional language, gave it fixed etymological
rules, and invented a new system of orthogra-
phy. He also revised the Bohemian transla-
tion of the Bible that had been made during the
preceding century, and composed many hymns.
Count Liitzow calls attention to the fact that
from this period, more strongly than before,
Hus " affirmed that the Bible was the only true
source of Christian belief. This position neces-
sarily incensed the adherents of the papal au-
thority more than almost any other could have
done."
Meanwhile Sigismund, who had originally
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 65
inherited Brandenburg and superseded Va-
clav as emperor of Germany, had induced the
church authorities to call a council at Constance
to settle the question of the rival pontiffs. And
to this council Hus was summoned to refute the
charges of heresy. " From the point of view
of the church," notes an English historian,
" there is no doubt that he was a dangerous
man — a violent political agitator, a heroic re-
former. He preached doctrines which had been
formally condemned and he preached them
with a flaming eloquence that carried all before
it."
Sigismund promised Hus a safe-conduct, a
fair hearing, and a free return to Bohemia,
even in the event of his not submitting to the
decisions of the council. He was brought before
the council several times and required to make
a general recantation of all heretical doctrines
that he had taught. The charges brought
against him were (1) teaching that laymen as
well as priests should be granted the cup of
the eucharist; (2) attacking transubstantia-
tion; (3) insisting that the moral character of
the priest affected the validity of the sacra-
ment, and (4) criticizing the discipline and or-
ganization of the church. He asked to be heard
66 Bohemia and the Cechs
in defence of the doctrines that he had taught
the Bohemians, but this was denied him; and
he was assured that recantation alone would
spare his life. But he assured the churchmen
that he would prefer to die rather than recant
with his lips opinions that he held in his heart.
He was declared a heretic and turned over to
the civil authorities to be burned.^
With all the cruel symbolic acts that an out-
raged orthodoxy could invent, John Hus was
burned at the stake at Constance the 6th of
July, 1415. He had been degraded from the
office of priesthood and expelled from the
church before he was handed over to the sec-
ular arm ; and, as he was led to his cruel fate,
he was required to wear a paper cap upon
which fiends and devils were painted, and bear-
ing the unchristian legend, " We commit your
soul to the devil." Hus sang the liturgy as the
fire was kindled about him and he was only
silenced by the flames that finally choked him.
His ashes were thrown into the Ehine that they
might not be taken back to Bohemia and ven-
erated. A generation later Erasmus, the great
Dutch scholar, forcibly remarked : * * John Hus
* For a full account of the trial and last days of Hus, see the
recent admirable book by Count Ltltzow: The life and times
of Master John Hus (New York and London, 1909).
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 67
was murdered, not convicted." And that ver-
dict is shared by most impartial historians.
The burning of Hus was the beginning and
not the end of the religious discord in Bohemia.
His funeral pyre was the signal for a fierce
struggle that lasted for more than fifty years
and left behind those ineffaceable memories of
suffering and ruin which followed in the train
of the terrible and desolating Hussite wars.
The treachery of Sigismund, in abandoning
Hus, has left a stain on the name of that sov-
ereign which the intervening centuries have
not blotted out. That he should have broken
his word with Hus because of his devotion to the
Eoman church might be excused; but to have
subsequently written the Bohemian nobles as-
suring them of his profound regret that Hus
had been burned and declaring that he did
everything in his power to prevent it, and then
to ha,ve urged a crusade against the Bohemians
because they resented the murder of their great
reformer, — surely, as Mr. Maurice points out,
no ruler ever took so much pains to write him-
self down a liar as did Sigismund.
Shortly after the burning of Hus, his col-
league, Jerome of Prague, met the same fate
at the hands of the council of Constance. Je-
68 Bohemia and the Oechs
rome was a great scholar and a great traveller ;
but his part in the moral revolution of Bohemia
was relatively insignificant. Worn and starved
by long imprisonment, Jerome finally yielded
to his persecutors 4nd recanted. This satisfied
the Italian members of the council and they
desired to set him free ; but the Germans, with
centuries of bitter hatred toward the Bohemi-
ans, insisted that his recantation could not be
trusted and insisted upon further examination.
He was agaia called before the council, when he
took occasion to express keen regret that phys-
ical weakness had led him to recant, for he
declared that he still believed in the teachings
of Hus and Wycliffe. He was promptly led to
the stake and burned.
When the news of the burning of Hus
reached Bohemia it produced indescribable ex-
citement and indignation. A stirring protest
was sent to Constance against " the eternal,
shameful wrong ' ' ; the Roman Catholic priests
were promptly expelled from their parishes;
the houses of the clergy were plundered ; siege
was laid to the palace of the archbishop of
Prague and he was forced to flee in dismay;
the town-hall at the capital was seized and the
councillors, who continued faithful to the Ro-
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 69
man party, were dragged to the windows and
hurled to the angry crowd in the square below,
who, " with the fury of wild beasts, tore them
limb from limb. ' ' The university declared Hus
a holy martyr for the faith of Christ, and or-
dered that the day of his martyrdom (the 6th
of July) should thereafter be observed as a
national holiday ; and the Bohemians — nobles
and common people — swore that, to their last
breath, they would uphold religious freedom.
When the news of these and other acts of
violence reached Vaclav, he was thrown into
such a paroxysm of rage that he died from a
stroke of apoplexy. As he died without heirs,
the question of a successor greatly complicated
the disturbed conditions in Bohemia. His
brother Sigismund was the logical heir, but
he had alienated the national party by his
treachery with Hus, and they declared that noth-
ing could induce them " to recognize as king
the man who had put to death their saint and
hero. ' ' In spite of his machinations — and they
were worthy of an American political machine
boss — it required some years, and then by the
aid of arms, for Sigismund finally to possess
the crown of Bohemia.
The question of the cup — or communion in
70 Bohemia and the Cechs
both kinds, as it was more commonly called —
was the theological rock that divided Bohemia
into two hostile political parties. In the prim-
itive Christian church, as historical students
have asserted, the communion was administered
after the repast and in two kinds — bread and
wine. The Greek Orthodox church, from which
Bohemia had received Christianity, preserved
the ancient practice ; but in the Roman church,
the priest alone took the communion with the
two kinds, administering the sacrament to the
laity under the form of bread alone.
Bohemia, however, clung with great tenacity
to the habit of administering the communion
in the two kinds ; and it was not until the time
of Gregory VIII that the practice was formally
forbidden. It continued in use among the com-
mon people, and became a distinctive feature
of the Hussite movement. In 1417 the univer-
sity of Prague declared that communion in both
kinds was necessary to the salvation of the soul,
although the Eoman church had forbidden the
cup to the laity.
Before the death of Vaclav there had been
but two political parties in Bohemia — the na-
tional party, which demanded church reform
and a larger measure of religious freedom, and
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 71
the Eoman party, composed almost entirely of
Germans, who resented the criticisms that had
been made against the clergy. But in the tur-
moil that followed the news of the burning of
Hus and the attempts of Sigismund to get pos-
session of Bohemia, three well-defined parties
emerged, and these at a later date were again
subdivided by factional differences. The Eo-
man Catholic party favoured submission to
Sigismund and the decrees of the mother
church. Its support came almost entirely from
the German settlements in Bohemia and Mo-
ravia. The utraquist party, composed largely
of the Bohemian nobility and the more con-
servative nationalists, showed its willingness to
accept Sigismund if he would pledge himself
to the question of church reform and a larger
measure of religious liberty. The third party,
sometimes called the extreme reform party,
thoroughly distrusted Sigismund and desired
to break with the authority of the papal see and
organize a national church. It " rejected the
mass and all the sacraments, except baptism
and communion, the doctrine of the existence
of purgatory, and many of the rules and reg-
ulations of the church. Its adherents main-
tained that the Holy Bible was the sole author-
72 Bohemia and the Cechs
ity in all matters of religious belief." This
party subsequently became known as the Ta-
borites, from the fortified town of Tabor which
they made their stronghold during the Hussite
wars. The utraquist party later became known
as the calixtines, because of the chalice which
became the symbol of granting the cup to the
laity. It was represented by the university
which from the first opposed the extreme re-
form party, and declared that Christian doc-
trine was found not only in the Bible, but also
in the traditions of the church, so long as those
traditions were not in contradiction to scrip-
ture. The calixtines, as Palacky has remarked,
ultimately became the aristocratic party, and
represented the university and the city of
Prague ; while the Taborites became the demo-
cratic party and represented the common peo-
ple who lived in the small villages and towns.
Under the leadership of Nicholas of Husi-
nec, the royal burgrave of the castle of Hus
and a member of the court of King Vaclav,
the extreme reform party gathered in a field
near Austi for worship and deliberation; and
on a near-by hill they subsequently established
the fortified stronghold of Tabor which played
an important role in the wars of the following
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 73
years. Originally these gatherings near Austi
were in the nature of primitive camp-meetings
on a grand scale, as many as forty thousand
people sometimes assembling. They came from
all. parts of Bohemia and Moravia in solemn
processions, carrying banners bearing the em-
blems of the sacraments. They divided into
numerous congregations, each sex by itself,
with priests in charge of each. Some preached,
others heard confession, and still others admin-
istered the communion in both kinds.
When, however, Pope Martin V proclaimed
a crusade against Bohemia and called the en-
tire Christian world to arms against them,
John 2izka, who had distinguished himself as
a military leader during the reign of Vaclav,
turned these religious gatherings into a per-
manent camp. A bold eminence was fortified
and Tabor became the stronghold of the re-
forming party and the centre of all those who
opposed King Sigismund and his allies. It has
well been said that when a nation is passing
through a crisis, it always finds a leader for
the crisis. John 2izka of Trocnov was the
leader that Bohemia produced at this critical
moment. He and John Hus, as some biogra-
phers assert, may have been school-fellows.
74 Bohemia and the Cechs
Attaining manhood he became a knight-errant,
serving first under the king of Poland and af-
terwards under King Vaclav, with whom he
stood in high favour. He was unquestionably
the greatest military genius of his age, and by
some historians he is regarded as the inventor
of modern tactics. He never lost a battle ; and
by his indomitable energy and invincible lead-
ership, armies of peasants and mechanics were
organized which beat down, with iron flails and
wooden clubs, the mail-clad knights of Europe.
His barricades of wagons were notable in-
stances of his military genius, and the ardour
with which his soldiers sang the battle hymn,
" Ye who the Lord God's warriors are," which
2izka himself probably composed, indicates the
religious source of his irresistible courage.
' ' Intolerant, fanatical, and cruel, he was never-
theless a true patriot, disinterested and humble,
striving to lead a godly and righteous life.
Deeming himself an avenger of the divine law,
he mercilessly destroyed all whom he believed
to be its foes, and in the spirit of Israel's stern
leader, ' hewed in pieces before the Lord. ' " ^
Crusaders to the number of a hundred thou-
* The best life of ^i^ka is by Tomek, in the Bohemian.
(Prague, 1885.) See also George Sand's Jean Zyska and Lenau's
Bilder aus dem Hussitenkriege.
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 75
sand responded to the proclamation of Pope
Martin V to assist Sigismund in ridding Bo-
hemia of heresy, ^neas Sylvius says that the
horsemen alone numbered seventy thousand,
and Lawrence of Brezova, a contemporary
chronicler, says that the crusading army in-
cluded Germans, Hungarians, Croatians, Dal-
matians, Bulgarians, Wallachians, Sicilians,
Ruthenians, Bavarians, Saxons, Austrians, Sua-
bians. Frenchmen, Spaniards, Poles, and Eng-
lishmen. The crusaders were led by the Elec-
tor Palatine, the archbishops of Maintz, Treves,
and Cologne, Frederick of HohenzoUern, Duke
Albert of Austria, and other German princes.
The Bohemian forces were led by 2izka.
Prague was the objective point. 2izka occu-
pied an elevated point of land east of the city
known as Vitkov, but now called 2izka's Hill.
The allied forces were directed by Sigismund.
The contest was brief but decisive. The cru-
sading army was totally defeated, Sigismund
fled in dismay from Bohemia, and the arch-
bishop of Prague went over to the Hussites.
Those of the utraquist nobles who had sided
with Sigismund against their coxmtrymen were
highly incensed at the barbaric conduct of the
retreating Germans who " scoured the neigh-
76 Bohemia and the Cechs
bouring country, burning as heretics all Bo^
hemians, without distinction, whom they could
seize."
The Bohemians — those who had fought with
and against 2izka — now got together and drew
up prelinunary peace measures known as the
Articles of Prague. The articles declared (1)
The word of God is to be preached by Christian
priests in Bohemia without let or hindrance;
(2) the sacrament of the eucharist is to be
administered, under each kind, of bread and
wine to all believers not disqualified to receive
it by reason of mortal sin; (3) the secular
dominion exercised by the clergy over worldly
goods and possessions, to the prejudice of their
spiritual office and the damage of civil author-
ity, is to be taken away from them, and the
clergy are to be brought back to the evangelical
rule and the apostolic practice of Christ, and
(4) all mortal sins, especially such as are pub-
lic, as also all other irregularities contrary to
the divine law, in whatever estate they may
appear, are to be punished by those by whom
it pertains. The articles were drawn up in
Latin, Bohemian, and German and sent to all
the courts of Europe. The Bohemian diet
adopted them ; allegiance to Sigismund was re-
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 77
nounced, and twenty regents were appointed to
administer the affairs of the kingdom.
The Articles of Prague, as Count Liitzow
has pointed out, " were undeniably in accord
with the wants of the age and formed the basis
of a possible agreement. The utraquist nobles
who, though they were on the king's side, yet
warmly approved of the four articles, unsuc-
cessfully attempted to obtain their acceptance
by the papal legate."
The next fourteen years (1420-1434) wit-
nessed the extraordinary military success of
2izka and his small but well-disciplined army.
The war was not confined to Bohemia. The
Hussites made repeated inroads into Saxony
and other parts of the German empire. They
invaded Franconia, penetrated as far as Meis-
sen, and threatened to besiege Nuremberg.
2izka died of the plague in 1424, and his place
was taken by Prokop, sumamed the Great, a
married Taborite priest. In the five crusades
that had been sent against the Bohemians, the
allied forces of Sigismund and the foreigners
had suffered ignoble defeat in each; and in
the great battle of Domazliee (Taus), fought in
1431, " the stateliest army that Sigismund had
yet been able to raise went down, almost with-
78 Bohemia and the Cechs
out a struggle, before the grim, determined
Bohemians."
Sigismun^ now recognized how utterly hope-
less it was to try to coerce the Bohemians, and
he again begged Pope Martin V to assemble
a general council of the church to settle the
religious differences. The unwilling pontiff
finally called the council of Basel and invited
the Bohemians to send deputies. Upon the fol-
lowing conditions they agreed to send repre-
sentatives to Basel: (1) Full guarantee of the
personal safety of the envoys; (2) the right to
express their opinions freely; (3) the right to
censure the abuses of the church, and (4) the
right to defend the Articles of Prague. The
Eoman pontiff assented to these conditions and
further stipulated that church services in the
towns through which the envoys passed need
not be suspended, which the rules of the church
would have required, since Bohemia was under
interdict.
Fifteen Bohemian delegates — including Pro-
kop the Great, the leader of the Taborite mili-
tary forces, John of Rokycan, who subsequently
became the utraquist archbishop of Prague,
and Peter Payne, an English disciple of Wyc-
liffe who had taken refuge in Bohemia — were
John Hus and the Moral Revolution 79
selected; and they were accompanied by an
escort of three hundred horsemen. After end-
less discussions, a compromise was finally
agreed upon: the Bohemians were allowed
communion with the cup, they were permitted
the free preaching and reading of the gospel,
and the right to draw the clergy before the
secular tribunals. But the question of the
moral reform of the clergy — of such keen in-
terest to the Bohemians — was not taken up
by the council of Basel, although it was in ses-
sion for eighteen years.
Peace at last restored, Sigismund (1436-
1437) was finally permitted to take possession
of the kingdom for which he had struggled for
seventeen years ; but he lived only a few months
to enjoy his possession. Before his death he
had provided for the succession of his son-
in-law, Albert of Hapsburg (1437-1439). The
unpopularity of Albert, occasioned by his at-
tempts to Germanize certain cities in Bohemia
and Moravia, caused his downfall; and the
Bohemians proceeded to elect Casimir, the
younger brother of the king of Poland. The
death of Albert and the subsequent birth of a
son to his queen (Elizabeth), the granddaugh-
ter of Charles IV, brought the strife to an end ;
80 Bohemia and the Cechs
and Ladislav Posthumus (1439-1457) was de-
clared the rightful occupant of the Pfemysl
throne.
The question of the guardianship of young
Ladislav during his minority caused no little
disturbance. Frederick III, the newly elected
German emperor, claimed the protection of his
nephew. The struggles of the two dominant
parties in Bohemia, the absence of any duly
appointed regent, and the consequent turmoil
and confusion led to the selection of George
of Podebrad, " the first and only Protestant
king of Bohemia." The next chapter will deal
briefly with the events which followed the death
of Albert.
CHAPTER V
GEOEGE OF PODIiBEAD, THE PEOTESTANT KING
)
One of the most interesting epochs in Bohemian history —
Struggle for supremacy during the minority of Ladislav —
George of Podebrad becomes regent — Disintegration of the
Taborites — Question of rehgious rights again revived —
John of Rokycan — An unconfirmed archbishop — Struggles
with Rome — Brief reign of Ladislav — George of Podebrad
becomes king of Bohemia — Period of rehgious tranquiUity —
Renewed conflicts and attempts to abrogate the Articles
of Prague — Conflict with the papal legate — German party
takes sides with Rome — George excommunicated — AUi'
ance with Poland — Death of King George — His qualities as
a statesman — • Conflrmation of the Pohsh prince — Invasion
of Bohemia by Matthew of Hungary — Vladislav and the
papal party — Moral dehnquency of the priests — Reign
of King Louis — The reformation of Martin Luther — Fer-
dinand and the rehgious quarrels in Germany — Efforts to
prevent the spread of Protestantism in Bohemia — Growth
of the Bohemian Brethren — The wavering policy of Maxi-
milian — Ferdinand and the counter reformation — The
Letter of Majesty
The reign of George of Podebrad (1458-
1471), the so-called Protestant king of Bohe-
mia, is, after that of Charles IV, one of the
most interesting in the history of the kingdom.
As pointed out in the last chapter, Albert, duke
of Austria, succeeded Sigismund ; but his reign
was short, and, leaving no male heir, the Bohe-
mians proceeded to elect Casimir, brother of
81
82 Bohemia and the Cechs
King Vladislav III of Poland. But as Albert's
widow gave birth to a son a few weeks later,
the election of Casimir was annulled.
It wag widely recognized, however, that the
country needed a strong and wise ruler during
the minority of Ladislav Posthumus (1439-
1457) ; and this was ultimately settled by the
supremacy of one of several contending polit-
ical parties. There were four important par-
ties in Bohemia at this time — the German
party, which represented the interests of the
Eoman Catholic church, of which Ulrich of
Eosenberg was the leader; the conservative
utraquist party headed by Menhard of Jind-
fichuv Hradec; the national (calixtine) party
led by Ptacek of Pirkstein, and the Taborites,
or ultra-reform party, directed by Bishop Nich-
olas and a popular Taborite pastor named Ko-
randa.
Menhard went over to the German party;
the Taborites were disintegrated by the com-
bined opposition of the other parties ; and, at
the death of Ptacek, George of Podebrad be-
came the leader of the national or moderate
reform party. Although a young man less than
twenty-four years of age, he displayed the sa-
gacity of an experienced statesman and the
The Protestant King 83
virtues of a patriot; and within a few months
he made himself regent of Bohemia.
His great force of character and extraordi-
nary administrative ability were recognized by
all parties, ^neas Sylvius,^ who later occupied
the papal chair, says of George : ' ' He was a
man of great and many sided gifts, of exhaust-
less energy and enterprise, of keen intuition,
so that he seldom made a mistake when com-
pelled to decide a question upon the spur of
the moment; he was a man of agreeable man-
ners, just and upright in his dealings, but some-
what contaminated by heresy. ' '
The events that led up to the ultimate tri-
umph of George of Podebrad were both nu-
merous and complicated. Frederick III, of
Hapsburg, and the uncle of Ladislav, took
charge of the young prince and refused to allow
him to be taken to Bohemia. He claimed the
right of guardianship and the education of the
lad in accordance with the doctrines of the
Eoman Catholic church. A council of repre-
sentatives from Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia, and
Lusatia — the component parts of the kingdom
— met in a diet to establish a regency during
1 Mnese Sylvii De Bohemorum, et ex his Imperatonim aliquo
Origine ac Gestis. Basel, 1575.
84 Bohemia and the Cechs
the absence of the infant king. The discordant
parties could not come to terms, and the diet
was dissolved.
The question of the religious rights of the
Bohemians was again revived. These rights
were embodied in the Articles of Prague which
had been sanctioned by Pope Martin V and the
council of Basel ; but Martin had died in 1431
and was succeeded by Eugene IV, who dissolved
the council the year following. The ecclesias-
tics, however, continued in session in spite of
him, and an open rupture took place which was
ultimately healed. Again in 1437 Eugene dis-
solved the council and called another at Fer-
rara. Those of the cardinals who refused to ac-
company him remained in session at Basel and
elected Felix V in his place. Thus the church
again had two popes and two councils. Eugene
died in 1447 and was succeeded by Nicholas V
in whose favour Felix abdicated. The articles,
he maiatained, had been adopted by a schis-
matic council, and he refused to recognize them.
The delay in the papal confirmation of John
of Eokycan as archbishop of Prague had also
irritated the Bohemians. John had been se-
lected during the reign of Sigismund. This
wily ruler had consented to the selection of
The Protestant King 85
John and liad assured the Bohemians that the
pope would confirm the appointment. He
showed them a letter which he had written to
the Holy Father urging the confirmation of
John as archbishop of Prague. But at the
same time he sent a secret messenger to Rome
requesting the pope to delay the matter " in
the hope that the Bohemians might solve the
difficulty by murdering Eokycan."
The fortunes of the unconfirmed archbishop
were intimately identified with those of George
of Podebrad. John was born near Plzen and
educated at the university of Prague, where he
became a follower of the teachings of Master
John Hus. In 1425 he was appointed to the
Tyn church, where his eloquence won him im-
mediate fame. He was one of the delegates to
the council of Basel and delivered a stirring
address in defence of the religious practices of
the Bohemians, after which he was the recog-
nized spiritual leader of the national reform
party. In 1435 he was selected archbishop of
Prague; and although his appointment was
never officially approved by the Roman pontiffs,
he held the office for thirty-six years.
A Bohemian historian says of him: " Eoky-
can was a man of much wisdom and modera-
86 Bohemia and the Cechs
tion, great depth and earnestness of character,
of fervent patriotism, and unswerving devotion
to the caupe of truth. It was for these qualities
that the Bohemians loved him, and endured all
manner of persecution from the pope rather
than give up their chosen archbishop."
The arrival in Prague at this time of Car-
dinal Carvajal on a mission from the pope
brought matters to a crisis. He made it clear
that the Roman see would probably never con-
firm the selection of John of Eokycan as arch-
bishop, and he confessed entire ignorance of
the Articles of Prague and the religious priv-
ileges which they were supposed to grant.
" George of Podebrad, who had in his custody
the original of this precious document, there-
fore forwarded it to him. When, upon the fail-
ure of his mission, the cardinal left Prague
shortly afterwards, his departure caused a
great outcry among the townspeople. They
accused him of having carried away the orig-
inals of the famous compacts and they threat-
ened him with the fate of Hus. ' ' ^ Horsemen
were sent to overtake the cardinal and the pre-
cious document was recovered. But the epi-
1 Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count Llitzov, Ne^ir
Vork and London^ 1910.
The Protestant King 87
sode caused no little agitation, and the national
party called a convention to meet at Kutna
Hora. It was decided to organize an army,
capture Prague from the German party, and
establish some form of settled government in
Bohemia.
A small but well disciplined army under the
leadership of George of Podebrad marched
against the capital in September, 1448. He
obtained possession of the city almost without
resistance ; and although some of the noblemen
joined the German party and formed a league
against him, which occasioned more or less civil
war, the kingdom was soon in his hands. He
aimed to bring peace to the country, and to this
end he appointed representatives of both the
great political parties to office. He conciliated
the Roman Catholics, overcame the opposition
of most of the nobles, and at a general diet held
at Prague in 1452 he was duly elected governor
of Bohemia.
The next year Frederick was induced to sur-
render Ladislav. The young prince was brought
to Prague and declared king of Bohemia. The
governorship of George was extended six years
and he was made regent of the kingdom. As
it had become evident that the Roman see would
88 Bohemia and the Cechs
not confirm the appointment of John as arch-
bishop, the ecclesiastical representatives of the
national party projected a scheme for an alli-
ance with the Greek Orthodox church. Nego-
tiations were opened with Constantinople ; but
the capture of the capital of the Greek empire
by the Turks brought the project to an abrupt
close.
Bohemia enjoyed a large measure of pros-
perity under the regency of George. His wise
administration of public affairs and the con-
ciliatory policy which he adopted towards the
Eoman Catholics and the leaders of the op-
posing parties gave him recognized standing
for statesmanship of a high order.
The death of Ladislav in 1457 extinguished
the last claim to direct line with the Pfemysls.
According to an arrangement made by Sigis-
mund the Bohemian crown should now revert
to the Hapsburgs, but Frederick III had his
hands more than full, and he made no effort to
secure the prize. This left the Bohemians free
to select their own ruler. There were many
candidates for the post, but the Bohemian diet,
by a unanimous vote, elected George of Pode-
brad king of Bohemia. The news of the choice
caused joyful tidings throughout the kingdom.
The Protestant King 89
" Thus," remarks Mr. Maurice,^ " the election
of George of Podebrad marks the accession of
the first heretic king in the history of Europe. ' '
During the pontificate of Calixtus III Bohe-
mia enjoyed comparative tranquillity, so far,
at least, as interference from Rome was con-
cerned ; and to preserve friendly relations with
the Roman see, King George suppressed all re-
ligious sects in his kingdom that went beyond
the demarcations of the Articles of Prague.
He required the separatists from the utraquist
body to leave the country ; he forced the Tabor-
ites to surrender and disperse; the Bohemian
Brethren, a new Protestant sect that had orig-
inated under the leadership of Peter Celcicky
and Brother Gregory, were severely perse-
cuted, and the Waldensian exiles from Italy
and France were no longer welcomed. " The
successful policy of Podebrad, ' ' remarks Count
Liitzow,^ " had secured Bohemia against all
foreign enemies, and peace and order were also
maintained. The prosperity of the country had
greatly increased in consequence, and the peo-
ple began to hope that the happy times of King
' The story of Bohemia. By C. Edmund Maurice. New York
and London, 1896.
2 Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count Lutzow. London
and New York, 1910.
90 Bohemia and the Cechs
Charles IV were returning. The university of
Prague, which had suffered greatly during the
troublous times, now again entered into fuU
activity."
When, however, Pius II ascended the papal
throne the struggle was renewed. As Cardinal
Piccolomini, Pius had passed a number of
years in Bohemia on various religious mis-
sions ; he had written a history of the country
under the pen-name of ^neas Sylvius,^ and it
was generally supposed that he would continue
the conciliatory policy of his predecessor. But
he soon disillusioned the Bohemians. He de-
manded their immediate return to the ritual of
the Eoman church, and he sent a legate to
Prague to make known his intentions.
The compact known as the Articles of Prague
was declared null and void, and the Bohemians
were advised that if they did not submit peace-
ably to the decision of the pope that the church
would be obliged to resort to force. It was
furthermore asserted that King George had not
kept the oath that he had made at the time of
his coronation.
The news of the revocation of the articles
1 ^neae Sylvii De Bphemorvun, et ex his Imperatorum aliquot
Origins ac Gestis. Basel, 1575
The Protestant King 91
granting religious tolerance caused consterna-
tion in Bohemia. The king called a meeting of
the diet, at which he said, " We are greatly
surprised at the doings of the pope ; for it
seems to us that it is his intention again to
bring war into this kingdom, that was brought
into unity and peace by means of the compact.
How can he destroy and take away from us
what was granted us by the holy council of
Basel, which was greater than any pope; yea,
and confirmed by his predecessor, Eugene IV?
Should each pope thus attempt to bring to
naught what was done by others, what security
would there be for any law? He complains that
we have not kept the oath taken before our
coronation. We will read that oath to you."
After the reading of the oath, the king con-
tinued: " You have heard that we swore to
destroy all errors, sects, and heresy in our
kingdom. You know with certainty that we do
not love heretics, nor do we wish to defend
them ; but we never supposed that our compact,
and taking the cup in communion, was heresy,
since they are based upon the gospel and the
practice of the primitive church. We were
born to the calixtine faith, and never deviated
from the teaching of our parents; we con-
92 Bohemia and the Cechs
formed to this faith whUe a noble ; then, again,
as governor of the country; and in the same
faith we ascended the royal throne. How then
could we declare this faith heresy, and by try-
ing to exterminate it make war upon ourselves ?
It is a great mistake, for which we are not
responsible, that any one should think that, for
the sake of the royal throne, we would do vio-
lence to our own conscience, deny our faith,
and contend against Grod. Therefore, know ye
all, that, as we ourselves, so our wife by our
side, and our dear children, will remain true to
the calixtine doctrine according to the compact^
and for this faith we are ready to lay down our
crown and our very lives. ' '
The pope's legate then delared that the com-
pact was revoked, and that communion in both
kinds was prohibited. He added, " I declare to
you the will of the most holy father, which is,
that you. King George, your queen, and your
children must not take communion except at
the church on the Hradcany ; that you shall
clear your court of all unworthy chaplains, the
sowers of errors leading to damnation, and de-
liver them up to the chapter of Prague for pun-
ishment; forbid all heretics to administer the
sacraments, which, in their hands are not sacra-
The Protestant King 93
ments, but blasphemies; and if you refuse to
do this, you wUl stand before man and Grod
guilty of perjury." King George protested
that he had not violated his oath, to which the
legate replied, " It is not for you to interpret
your oath, but for him who administered it."
The king answered, " I acknowledge no judge
but my own conscience." The legate then ex-
claimed : ' ' Do you dare to withstand the apos-
tolic commands? Eemember what you do; it
is rebellion, not obedience, and the pope will
not leave it unpunished. His power reaches
far; look to your eroAvn. What is the source
of all earthly honours? Where do kings get
their crowns, prelates their authority and hon-
ours, and institutions of learning their privi-
leges? And he who can grant them, can also
take them away."
The prelate proceeded to rouse the German
party against the king. The malcontent nobles
met at Zelena Hora in November, 1465, and
accused King George of having violated the
laws of the country in the matter of taxation
and declared themselves no longer bound by
their oaths of allegiance. They secured the co-
operation of the emperor of Germany and the
king of Hungary. The latter had organized an
94 Bohemia and the Cechs
army to attack the invading Turks; but he
declared that a campaign against the heretical
Bohemians was as meritorious as warfare
against the Moslems. Palacky remarks in this
connection that if King Matthew had, at this
moment, directed all his energies agaiast the
Turks, instead of attempting to extirpate
religious liberty in Bohemia, he might have
crushed the Ottoman power, and thus spared
Hungary two centuries of Turkish servi-
tude.i
In December, 1466, Pope Pius issued a bull
of excommunication against King George. He
was deposed of his rank as king ; faithful Cath-
olics were forbidden to obey him, and the pro-
visional government of the kingdom was given
to the leaders of the league of Zelena Hora.
King Matthew of Hungary issued a proclama-
tion in which he declared his intention of de-
fending the Eoman Catholic faith against the
heretical Bohemians, and he proceeded to in-
vade Moravia. Brno was captured, and Mat-
thew subsequently had himself declared king
of Bohemia. He attempted to invade Bohemia,
but was repulsed; and in 1469 his army was
1 Geachichte von Bohmen. By FrantiSek PalackJ^. Fragile,
1844-1867.
The Protestant King 95
shut up at Vilem and he was forced to sue for
peace.
But King G6orge was not ignorant of the
alliances which the Holy Father was making,
and he was confident that the struggle would
be renewed. He therefore sought an ally in
the king of Poland. The latter consented to
cooperate with the Bohemian king provided, at
his death, the crown might pass to the Polish
prince Vladislav. It was a cherished plan of
King George to transmit his possessions to his
son ; but he sacrificed his ambition in order to
bring peace to his country.
The decision was ratified by the Bohemian
diet, and Prince Vladislav, the son of Casimir,
was recognized as the heir of the Pfemysl
throne. The nobles of the league of Zelena
Hora were pacified; the pope's allies were
driven from the country, and tranquillity was
once more restored. But at this moment (the
22nd of March, 1471) King George died of
dropsy, the death of his able and faithful co-
worker, John of Eokycan, the archbishop of
Prague, having taken place just a month before.
George of Podebrad was unquestionably one
of the most democratic and ablest occupants of
the Bohemian throne. He was the choice of
96 Bohemia and the Cechs
the people; and although the Germans, and
some of the nobles who adhered to the Eoman
party, were never reconciled to his selection,
he enjoyed a large measure of affection from
his subjects. Count Liitzow^ says of him:
" King George has always remained, next to
Charles IV, the sovereign whose memory the
Bohemians treasure most. Even the misfor-
tunes of the last years of his reign, and the
failure of his principal plans — supremacy in
Germany and the foundation of a national dy-
nasty^— do not diminish this feeling. It is
indeed possible that, had he succeeded in ob-
taining the prominent position in the empire
which his ambition marked out for him, the
affection of the Bohemians would have been
alienated; for it was the knowledge that they
were governed by a man of their own race that
mainly induced the Bohemians to love Pode-
brad and to retain their affection for him even
when his fortunes were at the lowest."
At a diet held at Kutna Hora in May, 1471,
the selection of the Polish prince was confirmed,
although the crown was also sought by King
Matthew of Hungary, Duke Albert of Saxony,
* Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Covint Lutzow. London
and New York, 1910.
The Protestant King 97
and the Dukes of Miinsterberg, the latter being
sons of the late King George of Podebrad. He
was crowned as King Vladislav II (1471-1516)
at Prague in August of that year, when he took
the oath of allegiance to the Articles of Prague,
and " the university presented him with a
neatly printed and bound copy of the Bible, so
that he might read it and direct himself and
his subjects according to the will of God. ' '
Failing in the election at Kutna Hora, King
Matthew of Hungary invaded Moravia, but a
treaty of peace was shortly concluded at Olo-
mouc, by the terms of which the Hungarian
king renounced his claims to Bohemia, but was
permitted to retain possession of Moravia, Si-
lesia, and Lusatia, on condition that these prov-
inces revert to Bohemia at his death.
Vladislav had been educated in the doctrines
of the Roman Catholic church and his govern-
ment was soon in the hands of the papal party.
But efforts to curtail the religious liberties of
the Bohemians caused so much disorder that
the reactionary party progressed slowly. Un-
der the papacy of Alexander VI the authorities
at Eome renewed their efforts to bring about
the abrogation of the Articles of Prague. But
without results. The Bohemians then, as so
98 Bohemia and the Cechs
many times since, stood by their historic
rights.
Upon the death of Matthew (1490), Vladis-
lav also inherited Hungary and transferred his
residence to that country. He was at best a
weak ruler; and prolonged residence abroad
permitted the nobles to usurp the royal powers
and the rights of the common people. It was
during these years that a reaction set in against
the democracy of George of Podebrad. Feu-
dalism was introduced from Germany, and the
peasants were reduced to a state of bondage.
Peter Chelcicky, a contemporary writer,
says: " The priests and prelates do not hold
it up as a sin for princes, nobles, and the rich
t& live a life of luxury, greed, pride, and be
guilty of all manner of wickedness, because they
themselves are guilty of the same sins. The
people have endured great evils on account of
the religious wars ; many of the peasants have
been obliged to forsake their homes on account
of hunger; they are obliged to pay threefold
and fourfold taxes, and what is left them is
taken away by the soldiers. The fortresses and
cities are filled with thieves, who rob, beat, and
imprison the peasants. There can be no for-
giveness for these cruel rulers who oppress
The Protestant King 99
their peasants, calling them knaves and dogs,
and all that they may satisfy their own insati-
able appetites. It is not right for a noble or
wealthy man to be idle all day long, to play
chess and cards, to sleep long, to commit adul-
tery like a brute, to stuff himself constantly,
and pour wine or beer into his throat as into
a cask. It is not right for them thus to oppress
the poor, do them wrong by compelling them
to do service, and to impose upon them many
other burdens. ' '
King Vladislav died in 1516 and was suc-
ceeded by his son Louis (1516-1526), a lad of
ten years. The emperor of Germany and the
king of Poland were recognized as the guardi-
ans of the young king, and Bohemia continued
to be governed by the nobles, the chief burgrave
being Zdenek Lev of Rozmital. Louis was also
king of Hungary and spent most of his time
in that country after attaining manhood, as his
father before him had done.
The Lutheran reformation that had broken
out in Germany revived the religious dissen-
sions in Bohemia. The Germans, it will be
recalled, had been the foremost opponents of
Master John Hus and the moral revolution;
they had invariably cast their strength with
100 Bohemia and the Cechs
the papal party; we can therefore understand
that " the Bohemians were surprised to see
the Germans now themselves receive the com-
munion in the two kinds, and renounce the au-
thority of the Eoman church. ' '
Hungary at this time was on the eve of a
crushing humiliation. The great Ottoman ruler,
Suleiman I, invaded the country with a well-
organized army of three hundred thousand.
Louis could muster a force of only twenty-five
thousand ; and at the battle of Mohac (the 29th
of August, 1526), the Hungarian-Bohemian
forces were totally defeated, and the greater
part of the Hungarian kingdom passed into the
hands of the Turks and was held by them for
nearly two hundred years.^ King Louis was
drowned while crossing a stream in the retreat
from the battle-field of Mohac. It has been well
remarked that everything in the life of King
Louis came before its time. His birth was pre-
mature ; he became king of Bohemia and Hun-
gary at the age of ten ; he married at sixteen,
and his death came at twenty.
By an agreement between the king of Poland
* See the Author's Turkey and the Turks: an account of the
lands, the peoples, and the institutions of the Ottoman Empire.
Boston, L. C. Page & Company; London, George Bell & Sons.
Second edition, revised and enlarged, 1909.
The Protestant King lOl
and the emperor of Grermany, it had been ar-
ranged that the latter 's grandson Ferdinand
should succeed Louis to the Bohemian throne.
This claim was based on the fact that Ferdi-
nand's wife was the only legitimate heir of the
house of Pfemysl. There were many candi-
dates— Dukes Louis and William of Bavaria,
Elector John of Saxony, King Sigismund of
Poland, and three or four Bohemian nobles.
The Bohemian diet finally came to a unanimous
vote in the selection of Ferdinand I (1526-
1564). The Bohemian crown was thus for the
third time awarded to a member of the house
of Hapsburg, where it has ever since remained.
Ferdinand also became king of Hungary, thus
ruling the three important states which consti-
tute the present empire of the Hapsburgs.
The reign of Ferdinand was disturbed by
the religious quarrels then agitating Germany.
There were at this time four religious parties
in Bohemia — the utraquist, the Bohemian
Brethren, the Lutheran, and the Roman Cath-
olic, the latter having the fewest adherents.
Grindelyi estimates that a third of the Bohe-
mians and Moravians may have been Eoman
1 Gesehichte der Ertheilung des Bohmischen Majestatsbriefe
von 1609. By Anton Gindely. Prague, 1868.
102 Bohemia and the Cechs
Catholics; although at the outbreak of the
Thirty Years' War he states that not a tenth
of the no^emen were Roman Catholics, and a
still smaller proportion among the other classes
of the population. Most Bohemian historians
think that his figures for the sixteenth century
are much too high.
' ' Although he was unsuccessful in his efforts
to prevent the spread of Protestantism," notes
Count Liitzow, " Ferdinand succeeded in con-
solidating his dynasty, and in strengthening the
royal authority in Bohemia. He was able to
obtain from the Estates the recognition of his
hereditary right to the throne. At the moment
of his accession he had been obliged to recog-
nize the elective character of the Bohemian
crown. When a great fire at Prague (1541)
destroyed all the state documents, Ferdinand
obtained the consent of the Estates to the sub-
stitution of a charter formulating the theory
that he had, in consequence of the hereditary
rights of his wife. Queen Anna, been accepted
as a king in the place of the former charter,
which had declared that he had become king
by election. This innovation, however, caused
great dissatisfaction in Bohemia."
To settle the ever recurring religious con-
The Protestant King 103
troversies, Ferdinand called a council of the
representatives of the parties " who either
professed the Catholic faith or recognized the
Articles of Pragnie." This excluded the Bo-
hemian Brethren and the Lutherans. Nothing
came of the council because the Eoman party
disapproved of all measures that put the utra-
quists on an equality with them. The growth
of the Brethren caused him no little concern.
In the drift from democracy and the tendency
toward imperialism which had characterized
the government of Bohemia since the death of
George of Podebrad, the Bohemian Brethren
had taught and practised the doctrine of the
brotherhood of man. In consequence, the sect
had been enormously augmented by the humble
people from all parts of the kingdom. Ferdi-
nand's imprisonment and torture of their lead-
ers, confiscation of their property, and prohi-
bition of their meetings in no sense retarded
their growth.
Six years before his death Ferdinand had
succeeded Charles V as emperor of Germany;
and these two offices he bequeathed to his son
Maximilian (1564-1576). Gindely^ says of
» Rudolf II und seine Zeit: 1600-1612. By Anton Gindelv.
Prague, 1868
104 Bohemia and the Cechs
him: " Maximilian differed from most of Ms
contemporaries, who were generally either
fiery adherents or bitter enemies of Catholi-
cism. Durmg the whole of his life he was un-
able to make up his mind definitely for or
against the Catholic cause. He played the part
of a discontented son as long as his father lived,
opposed him, and surrounded himself with en-
emies of the Catholic church; he avoided the
religious functions of that church, and the Prot-
estants founded great hopes on his accession
to the throne ; but as soon as he succeeded his
father he abandoned his former attitude, began
to favour the Catholics, and publicly conformed
to their creed."
If the reign of Maximilian had disappointed
the hopes of the Protestants, that of Eudolph II
(1576-1612) was certainly equally disappoint-
ing to the Roman Catholics. Educated under
the most intolerant conditions in Spain, he was
regarded by all parties in Bohemia as the most
likely agent for the revival of the reactionary
policy of Ferdinand. He had inherited from
his father the kingdom of Hungary, the duke-
dom of Upper and Lower Austria, and the Ger-
man empire. But his chief interests were in
literature, science, and art. Tycho Brahe, the
The Protestant King 105
Danish astronomer, and Johannes Kepler, the
Prussian astronomer, found refuge at his court
and opportunities for the pursuit of their scien-
tific studies. He made Prague his capital, and
the centre of artistic, scientific, and literary, as
well as imperial power. He was an ardent col-
lector of antiquities, and filled his palace at the
Hradcany in Prague with works of art. But
he was suspicious, reticent, and vacillating.
After negotiating for twenty years for the hand
of Isabella, the daughter of King Philip of
Spain, the latter despaired of a termination of
the negotiations, and gave her to the archduke
of Austria; and failing himself to attend the
meetings of the German diet, he never gave his
representatives advance instructions, and re-
quired them to carry on an interminable corre-
spondence.
He was, however, in 1609, forced to call a
diet at Prague to reach some conclusion on the
question of the rights of his Protestant sub-
jects. In his " Letter of Majesty," dated the
9th of July that year, he granted the free exer-
cise of religious worship to all his subjects;
Protestants were permitted to have their own
governing body and could call together general
assemblies from all parts of the kingdom; on
106 Bohemia and the Cechs
the royal domains they might erect such
churches as they needed, but on the lands of the
nobles no church could be erected without their
permission. The letter met with a storm of
opposition from the Roman Catholic party, and
particularly from 2denek of Lobkovic, Adam
of Sternberg, and Duke Ferdinand of Styria.
The opposition of the latter was significant, as
will be shown in the next chapter.
CHAPTER VI
END OF BOHEMIAN INDEPENDENCE
Rudolph deposed — Growth of Protestantism in Bohemia —
Interpretations of the Letter of Majesty — Ferdinand and
religious intolerance — Destruction of Protestant churches —
ConBicts at Prague — Provisional government established
— Jesuits banished by the Protestants — MaximiUan of
Bavaria comes to the aid of Ferdinand — Defeat of the Bo-
hemians in the battle of White Mountain — Retiun of the
Jesuits — Execution and exile of the Bohemian nobles —
Property confiscated — The Protestant reUgion suppressed
in the kingdom of Bohemia — Destruction of the national
Uterature by the Jesuits — Extension of the central authority
— Ferdinand forced to recognize the historic rights of the Bo-
hemians — Albert of Waldstein — His role in the Thirty
Years' War — Invasion of Bohemia by the Swedes — The
peace of WestphaUa — The country ruined by the war — ■
Ma,ria Theresa — Enlightened despotism — Conquest of Si-
lesia by the Prussians — Second expulsion of the Jesuits —
Joseph II — Decree of religious toleration — System of
serfdom modified — Leopold II and Francis — Napoleon and
the Bohemians — Metternich and the half century of re-
action — Francis Joseph.
The deposition of Rudolph, because lie had
not been able to prevent the spread of the Prot-
estant movement in Bohemia, and the accession
to the throne of his brother Matthew (1612-
1619), mark the beginning of the end of Bo-
hemian independence. But as Matthew was
already an old man, and as both his brothers,
107
108 Bohemia and the Cechs
like himself, were childless, it was apparent
that the crown must soon pass to other hands.
With th# rapid growth of Protestantism, re-
ligious differences multiplied. Not only Ger-
many and Bohemia, but also Austria, Bavaria,
and Styria had become greatly iafiltrated with
the heretical " poison " of the Lutherans and
Calvinists. In the latter country Duke Ferdi-
nand had inaugurated a Catholic reformation;
and, by the aid of military barbarism, he was
able not only to stem the advance of the move-
ment but to drive from the country all persons,
whom he did not put to the sword, who looked
with disfavour upon the religion of the Roman
Catholic church.
Conflict over the interpretation of the " Let-
ter of Majesty,"' referred to in the previous
chapter, was the immediate cause of the Thirty
Years' War. After the council of Trent the
Jesuits had entered the Hapsburg dominions
and boldly undertaken the reconquest of the
same to the church of Eome. The concessions
which the Catholics accused Rudolph of having
made to the Protestants, in permitting them to
build churches on the royal domain, met with
a storm of opposition from the Jesuits; but
this opposition did not assume serious proper-
End of Bohemian Independence 109
tions during the early years of the reign of
Matthew.
With the transmission of the Bohemian
crown to Ferdinand II (1619-1637) war was
imminent. The Protestant party had refused
to recognize the bequest of Matthew and had
chosen Frederick, the count palatine of the
Rhine, as king of Bohemia. With the aid of
the Catholic league, with Maximilian of Ba-
varia at its head, Frederick was no match for
the combined forces which united to suppress
heresy in Bohemia; and the party which had
struggled so many centuries for religious lib-
erty suffered an ignominious defeat at the bat-
tle of White Mountain.
Ferdinand had been educated by the Jesuits
and " never had they a more devoted pupil or
a more pliant tool." He had extirpated Prot-
estantism in Styria and he soon made it clear
that he proposed to do likewise in Bohemia.
" His Jesuit advisers," notes Count Liitzow,^
' ' openly declared that the present moment was
a ' golden opportunity for extirpating here-
tics.' " Pescheck^ states that Ferdinand had
1 Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count Lutzow. New
York and London, 1910.
2 Geschichte der Gegenreformation in Bohmen. By Christian
Adolph Pescheok. Leipzig, 1850.
110 Bohemia and the Cechs
asserted, ' ' Bather would he take a staff in his
hand, gather his family around him and beg
his bread from door to door, than tolerate a
heretic in his dominions." And he kept his
vow. Not a vestige of the Protestant religion
was left in Bohemia at the close of a brief reign
of eighteen years, although the Protestants had
constituted more than nine-tenths of the pop-
ulation when he became king of Bohemia in
1619.1
The "Letter of Majesty" had permitted
the Protestants to buUd churches on the royal
domains; but a bitter dispute arose as to the
nature of the royal domains. Estates which
were administered by the crown, but of which
the clergy had the usufruct, became the bone
of contention that precipitated the outbreak of
the war. The Protestant citizens of the town
of Hroby erected a church on such a domain
against the protests of the local Roman Cath-
olic clergy, and the building was destroyed by
orders from the archbishop of Prague. An ap-
peal was made to the king, but he declined to
afford any redress.
1 Dr. Anton Gindely, who writes from a distinctly Roman
_ jtholic point of view, states that at the beginning of the Thirty
Years' War " certainly not a tenth of the nobility of Bohemia,
Catholic point of view, states that at the beginning of the Thirty
Years' War " certainly not a tenth of the nobiUty of ~ '
and a still smaller proportion of the other classes, were Cj
See Gindely's Rudolf II und seine Zeit. Prague, 1868.
End of Bohemian Independence ill
There was a strong feeling in Prague that
the resident advisers of the king — Jaroslav of
Martiaic and William of Slavata — ^had influ-
enced the king unfavourably against the Prot-
estants, for both were staunch adherents of the
Roman Catholic church; and when it became
noised abroad that the Protestant churches of
the capital were to be destroyed and religious
liberty abolished, the Praguers marched to the
royal palace and threw both advisers from the
windows of the Hradcany. The intended vic-
tims escaped without serious injury, but the
event — Imown as the Defenestration of Prague
— marks the beginning of the terrible and des-
olating Thirty Years' War.
A provisional government was established,
an army quickly organized, and the Jesuits ban-
ished from the country. The edict of banish-
ment of the zealous followers of Loyola bears
striking resemblance to .that issued by the
Hapsburgs against the order one and a half
centuries later. The Bohemian decree of 1618
accuses the Jesuits of " desiring to subdue all
kingdoms and lands in the world to their yoke
and power."
Maximilian of Bavaria, who came to the as-
sistance of Ferdinand, had been educated under
112 Bohemia and the Cechs
the same Jesuit influence. He was a capable
military leader and " always glad to do some-
thing for the Catholic cause." The united
forces of Ferdinand, Maximilian, and the Cath-
olic league attacked the Bohemians at White
Mountain, just butside of Prague, on the 8th
of November, 1620, and within the space of lit-
tle more than an hour the fate of Bohemia was
decided. The defeated Bohemian Protestants
were scattered to the four winds; Frederick
was driven into exile, and Ferdinand and his
Jesuit co-workers took charge of Bohemia and
forced the people to return to the Roman Cath-
olic church or leave the country.
' ' The land which was practically Protestant
before any other European country," notes a
French historian, " was the land in which the
reactionary victory of Catholicism was most
complete — complete alike over peasant, towns-
man, and noble ; and whatever may happen to
be our own intellectual standpoint — whether
we sympathize with Rome or those who rebelled
against her — we shall in either case be equally
moved, as spectators of human events, by the
solemn and fateful irony of this singular and
dramatic climax." For nearly two hundred
years Bohemia was removed from the list of
End of Bohemian Independence 113
independent European nations, and was forced
to submit to what Denis ^ not inappropriately
characterizes as "a politico-clerical despot-
ism. ' '
Twenty-seven of the leading Bohemian no-
bles, who had not fled from the country after
the battle of White Mountain, were executed in
the market-place of Prague. Gindely,^ a Eo-
man Catholic historian, says of this event:
' ' These melancholy executions mark the end of
the old and independent development of Bohe-
mia. Members of the most prominent families
of the Bohemian nobility, eminent citizens and
learned men, in fact all the representatives of
the culture of the land, ended here and with
them their cause. The destiny of the country
was henceforth in the hands of foreigners, who
had neither comprehension nor sympathy with
its former institutions."
In point of culture Bohemia at this moment
was one of the most advanced countries in Eu-
rope. But all this was wiped out by the reac-
tionary policy of Ferdinand and his Jesuit ad-
visers. The country had a population of more
1 La Bohgme depuis la Montagne Blanc. By Emst Denis.
Paris, 1908.
2 History of the Thirty Years' War. By Anton Gindely.
Translated from the German by Andrew Ten Brook. New York
1884.
114 Bohemia and the Cechs
than four million inhabitants, bnt it was speed-
ily reduced to less than eight hundred thousand.
Some were executed; many were thrown into
prison for life or a long term of years, and,
according to Slavata, thirty thousand families
wandered into exile. " Starvation and torture
were regular means of coercion, and in many
districts there were quartered, on the refrac-
tory, bands of dragoons who in bitter mockery
went by the name of angel makers! " The
lands of the executed and exiled Protestants
were confiscated and given to foreigners —
Germans, Italians, and Spaniards. The Bohe-
mian schools were closed, the national language
was suppressed, and the once-famous univer-
sity degenerated into a Jesuit college. Unre-
mittingly and relentlessly the bigoted Ferdi-
nand and his equally bigoted advisers instituted
courts which proceeded against all Bohemians,
suspected of rebellion or heresy, with new and
unheard-of forms of procedure, evidence of evil
intent being taken as a proof of the most seri-
ous charge.
To the calamities already enumerated — the
execution of her great spiritual leaders, the
reduction of her population to a bare remnant,
the downfall of industrial prosperity — a still
End of Bohemian Independence 115
greater calamity awaited Bohemia in the de-
struction of her rich and abundant national lit-
erature. " Almost all literature in Bohemia
subsequent to Hus," remarks Count Liitzow,
* ' had been imbued with the spirit of the great
reformer and patriot. All this literature was
therefore doomed to destruction, and the Jesu-
its certainly were to a great extent successful.
If we except the classical literature, there is
none to whom belong so many books the exist-
ence of which can be proved with certainty, yet
of which all trace is lost, as to the older litera-
ture of Bohemia. Jesuits accompanied by sol-
diers — to prevent the possibility of resistance
— were empowered to search for heretical
books in all Bohemian dwellings from the noble-
man's castle to the peasant's hut. The Jesuit
Andrew Konias is particularly mentioned as
rivalling the fame of Omar or Archbishop The-
ophilus. He is perhaps the greatest book des-
troyer known to history, and boasted of having
himself burnt sixty thousand Bohemian vol-
umes."
Ferdinand proceeded to alter the Bohemian
constitution so that it might coincide with his
own intolerant and autocratic religious and
political notions. The Bohemian crown was
116 Bohemia and the Cechs
declared no longer elective but hereditary in
the house of Hapsburg. The civil and political
institutions of the kingdom were remodelled.
To the three estates already existing in Bohe-
mia — the nobles, the knights, and the citizens
— he added a fourth — the clergy. He further
provided that all privileges and rights hitherto
granted to Protestants were revoked, and no
non-Catholics^ — Jews excepted — were hence-
forth allowed to reside in Bohemia. Many of
the aristocratic privileges of the Bohemian diet
and the feudal nobility were withdrawn, and
the judicial, administrative, and financial pow-
ers of the kingdom were greatly curtailed.
There was a progressive extension of central
authority in the privy council, the aulic cham-
ber, and the war department domiciled at Vi-
enna. The professional bureaucratic spirit
which he introduced resulted in the transfer of
Bohemian autonomy to the imperial govern-
ment. Denis ^ thinks that the most important
factor in the suppression of the Bohemian na-
tionality and culture was ' ' the subtly tenacious
tactics and the opportunist policy which char-
acterized the propagandist methods of the So-
1 La Boh^me depuis la Montagne Blanc. By Ernst Denis.
Paris, 1903.
End of Bohemian Independence 117
ciety of Jesus; for it was to the Jesuits that
the task of recovering Bohemia for the Eomau
faith was entrusted, owing to the secular clergy
being disorganized and under the suspicion of
national bias. The uniformity of education, of
which they obtained the monopoly, had an im-
portant influence on the progress of centraliza-
tion, inasmuch as its prominent feature was the
employment of the German language and the
practically entire exclusion of the Bohemian
from the schools and university. ' '
In the revision of the Bohemian constitution,
however, Ferdinand was forced to recognize
certain historic rights and autonomous privi-
leges which dated back to the time of St.
Vaclav. He issued a decree which stated that
he allowed " the Bohemians to preserve their
ancient privileges as far as they had not been
suppressed by the new constitutional enact-
ments." The revival of their historic rights
and ancient privileges, as will be pointed out
in the next chapter, has been the watchword
of the modern Bohemian renaissance.
After Ferdinand, the most commanding fig-
ure of his reign was Albert of Waldstein, who
belonged to one of the oldest families of the
Bohemian nobility. His parents were Protes-
118 Bohemia and the Cechs
tants, but after their death his uncle sent him
to a Jesuit school at Olomouc, where he re-
nounced his early faith and adopted the creed
of the Eoman Catholic church. But as he
changed his creed so often in adult life it is
more than likely, as one of his biographers re-
marks, that ' ' none of these changes of religion
appear to have been to the slightest extent
founded on conviction."
Matters were not so easily adjusted in other
parts of the empire as in Bohemia. In many
of the German provinces the Protestants of-
fered the most stubborn resistance. It was
apparent to Ferdinand that the splendidly
equipped army of Gustavus Adolphus, at the
moment engaged in a struggle with the Poles,
would eventually come to the aid of the German
Protestants, and this might jeopardize the
counter-reformation which he had so brilliantly
inaugurated in Bohemia. The situation de-
manded a military genius of the first order, and
the choice fell to Albert of Waldstein, who was
destined to play a great role in the Thirty
Years' War. A German historian remarks in
this connection: " In spite of errors of judg-
ment and of sins of omission on the part of
his opponents, the Emperor Ferdinand was at
End of Bohemian Independence lid
this moment in an extremely difficult and dan-
gerous position. The sums extorted from the
Bohemians had been squandered on churches
and on Jesuits; the treasury was empty; to
oppose the various forces that were springing
up in all directions there was only the army of
Tilly. Spain was occupied elsewhere for the
moment, while Bethlen Gabor was making
ready to help the Protestants. It was natural
that in such an emergency Ferdinand should
seek for assistance wherever it was most easy
to obtain. Then it was that the man came to
the fore who was to occupy the thoughts of his
fellow-men, and to dominate his age to a rare
degree — a mysterious, elusive genius, not thor-
oughly good but certainly not thoroughly bad.
The character of Wallenstein is the most diffi-
cult to judge because of his own inveterate cau-
tion and reticence; it was his rule never to
commit to paper anything that might compro-
mise himself. Everything that we know about
his motives is at second-hand, and verdicts vary
according to the standpoint."
Waldstein had profited enormously by the
confiscation of the property of the executed,
imprisoned, and exiled Bohemian Protestants.
Ferdinand had made him duke of Friedland,
120 Bohemia and the Cechs
which gave him dominion over vast tracts in
northeastern Bohemia with the town of Jicm
as the centre. He was reputed immensely rich,
and one may jndge of the extent of his wealth
by the fact that the beer brewed in his domin-
ions in a single year brought him a revenue of
sixteen thousand guldens. In his hour of need
Ferdinand turned to Waldstein. He was to
raise an army of twenty-one thousand men at
his own expense. The army was to live by a
system of forced contributions. In addition to
a big salary which Ferdinand promised to pay
him, "Waldstein was to have as perquisite the
ransom of all ordinary prisoners, a share of the
booty, and certain political rights. He was also
given the right to make treaties with the terri-
torial lords with whom he came in conflict, and
if need be, to grant concessions in the matter
of religion.
His success was extraordinary, but he in-
curred the hatred of the Jesuits and the sus-
picion of Ferdinand, and at the diet of Regens-
burg in 1630 he was dismissed. He retired to
Bohemia and lived in his magnificent palace at
Prague and on his estates. But matters went
so badly for Ferdinand that he was forced to
recall him and give him absolute command of
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End of Bohemian Independence 121
the Roman Catholic forces. He again fell under
suspicion of treachery, and was murdered in
1634 in his palace at Prague by a band of
conspirators.
Ferdinand died in 1637 and was succeeded
by his son, who had previously been crowned
king of Bohemia as Ferdinand III (1637-1657).
Bohemia was invaded by the Swedes that year.
Many Bohemian exiles returned with the Swe-
dish army, and General Baner declared that he
came to Bohemia as a protector of the freedom
of the Protestants, and he was, accordingly,
welcomed with great enthusiasm by the peas-
ants. Podmokly (Bodenbach), tJsti (Aussig),
and Litomefice (Leitmeritz) were captured and
the invading army advanced on Prague. Baner
encamped twice before the city, but he did not
attack it, he was ultimately driven from the
country, and the Catholic reformation was re-
newed with great vigour.
The peace of Westphalia which terminated
the Thirty Years' War settled the fate of the
Protestant movement in Bohemia. The Prus-
sians and Swedes tried to secure such conces-
sions from Ferdinand III as would permit the
Bohemian exiles to return to their fatherland
and cling to their faith. Sweden, indeed, had
122 Bohemia and the Oechs
assured the Bohemian refugees who had en-
listed in her armies that she would require this
concession as a condition of peace. But Ferdi-
nand declared that he would continue the war
rather than allow the presence of a single Prot-
estant in Bohemia or Moravia. But Protes-
tants and Catholics were both tired of the
struggle, and Sweden was forced to consent to
the exclusion of the former from Bohemia. It
is estimated that one-third of the population in
the districts affected by the war perished. En-
tire provinces became deserts and heroic meas-
ures were adopted to repeople the uninhabited
districts. A local diet in Franconia, for exam-
ple, forbade any one under sixty to become a
monk and gave permission for every man to
have two wives.
Count Liitzow asserts that Bohemia suffered
more during the Thirty Years' War than dur-
ing the Hussite campaigns. " The towns," he
says, ' ' lost the larger part of their population.
Among the exiled Protestants had been almost
all the prominent merchants and tradesmen,
who now sought refuge in distant countries.
As of France after the edict of Nantes, it can
be said of Bohemia after the Thirty Years'
War, that it suffered by the loss of its best
End of Bohemian Independence 123
citizens, in such a manner that it can even now
be said to have hardly recovered. Prague, re-
cently the capital of a vast empire, . after the
treaty of Westphalia acquired the aspect of a
provincial town, and this continued throughout
the eighteenth century."
Two inconsequential reigns followed that of
Ferdinand III — Leopold I (1657-1705) and
Joseph I (1705-1711) — during which periods
the kingdom was Germanized and the move-
ment for the complete repression of Bohemian
nationality continued. Charles VI (1711-1740),
who as king of Bohemia was known as Charles
II, was crowned with great splendour at
Prague, but he was occupied with the adminis-
tration of other parts of his empire and gave
little attention to the internal affairs of Bo-
hemia. Having no male heir, his chief concern
was to transmit his possessions to his daughter,
and he devoted all his energy during the closing
years of his reign to this end.
The accession to the Bohemian throne of
Maria Theresa (1740-1780) marks an augmen-
tation of the centralizing tendencies which had
been in force since the peace of Westphalia.
There was, however, this difference: the en-
lightened despotism of a lay government super-
124 Bohemia and the Cechs
seded the traditional Eoman Catholic absolut-
ism which had prevailed since the disastrous
battle of the White Mountain. Her reign wit-
nessed the legislative beginnings of that polit-
ical and economic dualism which resulted in the
suppression of the separate chancellaries of
Austria and Bohemia, and the substitution of
a high court of justice, which destroyed the
historic federation of the states and produced
a union that rested solely on the sovereign's
hereditary personality.
The greater portion of the duchy of Silesia,
an integral part of the kingdom of Bohemia,
was one of the losses which the country was
required to meet during the reign of Maria
Theresa. At the treaty of Westphalia, the
Prussians had permitted the suppression of
Protestantism in Bohemia and Moravia, but
had stipulated that the religion was to be recog-
nized in the duchy of Silesia, and allowed cer-
tain privileges. It was alleged, however, that
such liberties were constantly curtailed by the
Jesuits, and the Silesian Protestants found no
redress at the hands of the Hapsburg rulers.
Frederick II, who had become king of Prussia
shortly before the death of Charles VI, made
the maltreatment of the Silesian Protestants
End of Bohemian Independence 125
the pretext for invading that province before
Maria Theresa was well seated on the unsteady
throne which her father had bequeathed to her.
There were many Bohemian exiles in Prussia
who kept Frederick in touch with the condition
of their co-religionists in Bohemia. Indeed, the
Prussian king himself wrote that in the district
of Kralove Hradec (Koniggratz) " there are a
few Hussites who are not utterly indisposed to
do a little spying for us. ' ' Frederick met prac-
tically no resistance m Silesia, although suffer-
ing a decisive defeat at Kolm in Bohemia ; and
at the close of the Seven Years' War the em-
press-queen was forced to cede to him the
county of Glatz and all of the duchy of Silesia
excepting the provinces of Teschen, Jagern-
dorf, and Troppau. Thus a third of the lands
of the Bohemian crown passed to the Hohen-
zoUerns.
Another important event during the reign
of Maria Theresa was the second expulsion of
the Jesuits from Bohemia (1773). It will be
recalled that they had been expelled from the
kingdom one and a half centuries before by the
Protestants, but this time it was a Roman Cath-
olic sovereign that issued the decree of banish-
ment. It was charged that " the Jesuits insti-
126 Bohemia and the Cechs
gated the authorities against the subjects and
the subjects against the authorities; that they
had empowered parricides to murder kings and-
the anoinfed of the Lord who refused to act
contrary to their God and in accordance with
their (the Jesuits') counsels; that they had
promised these criminals eternal salvation and
freedom from the pains of purgatory; that
they had by means of confessions obtained
knowledge of many family secrets. ' ' ^ The
strange part about the decree is that the
charges of 1773 are strikingly similar to those
made by the Protestants in 1618.
Maria Theresa was succeeded by her son
Joseph II (1780-1790), whom fifteen years
before her death she had made co-regent.
Joseph had been greatly influenced by the
French encyclopaedists. He was, as Denis has
remarked, " a philosophical monarch and the
disciple of Aufhldrung " and " he reduced the
clergy to the state of functionaries, secretly pro-
tected Freemasons, and flattered himself that
he had convinced his subjects that to be good
Catholics they had no need to be Romans ; yet
he circuitouslv reinstated the old demands of
* Quoted by Count Liitzow from a MS. copy preserved in the
state archives at Venice.
End of Bohemian Independence 127
Eome, the blind submission of the subject,
with the remarkable difference, that the
creed was changed, and the discipline hence-
forth guided not by the commands of the
church, but by the catechism of the encyclo-
paedists. ' '
One of the first acts of the sovereign after
the death of his mother was to issue a decree
of toleration, which granted religious freedom
to the Calvinists and the Lutherans, but re-
fused to recognize the Bohemian Brethren.
Since the battle of the White Mountain (1620)
only Roman Catholics and Jews were allowed
to reside in the country. The fact that seventy
thousand persons in the kingdom declared
themselves Protestants, the moment they were
free to do so, indicates that the spirit of John
Hus and the men of his time had not entirely
disappeared from Bohemia. Joseph also sup-
pressed seven hundred monasteries and re-
duced the number of monks from sixty-three
thousand to twenty-seven thousand.
He abolished the harder features of serfdom ;
took the inquisitorial power from the criminal
courts; dropped such crimes as magic, apos-
tasy, and marriage with infidels from the code,
and attempted to introduce a compulsory sys-
128 Bohemia and the Cechs
tern of education. The latter provision, how-
ever, inflicted lasting injury on the Bohemians.
It was decreed that all teaching should be in
the Germ^ language and that the German
should be the exclusive language of the courts.
The people in the country districts had never
given up their mother-tongue, and many of the
peasants were unfamiliar with the German.
As a result of the decree many Bohemians were
subjected to all sorts of vexations and frauds.
This aspect of the enlightened despotism of
Joseph was due to his determination " to con-
solidate the wide and variegated lands over
which he ruled into one vast monarchy, whose
only language was to be the German." How
signally this ambition failed the next chapter
will point out.
Joseph was succeeded by his brother Leopold
II (1790-1792). During his brief reign he re-
stored some of the local privileges that had
been taken from the Bohemians by his mother.
He called together the Bohemian states, which
for some years had not been permitted to meet,
and he endeavoured to conciliate the various
nationalities whom his mother and brother had
offended. But he reestablished servitude and
compelled the unfortunate peasants to resume
End of Bohemian Independence 129
cruel tasks from which they had been liberated
by Joseph.
Francis (1792-1835), of whom it has been
said that he was so far behind his time that he
ought to have died when his grandmother
(Maria Theresa) was born, was a reactionary
of the type of Ferdinand II. He was admirably
aided in his policy of political repression by
Metternich, the most sinister politician of mod-
ern times. This was the period when Napoleon
momentarily changed the map of Europe, and
he humbled Austria quite as much as Prussia.
His efforts, however, to secure the coopera-
tion of the Bohemians in his ambitious schemes
failed signally. " Your union with Austria,"
he wrote them in 1809, " has been your mis-
fortune. Your blood has been shed for her in
distant lands, and your dearest interests have
been sacrificed continually to those of the he-
reditary provinces. You form the finest portion
of her empire, and you are treated as a mere
province to be used as an instrument of pas-
sions to which you are strangers. You have
national customs and a national language. You
pride yourselves on your ancient and illustrious
origin. Assume once more your position as a
nation. Choose a king for yourselves, who
130 Bohemia and the Cechs
shall reign for you alone, who shall dwell in
your midst, and be surrounded by your citizens
and your soldiers." The stirring appeal, how-
ever, did nof arouse the nation to revolt against
the house of Hapsburg, although it called the
attention of the people to their splendid past,
and certainly had some effect on the writers
who prepared the way for the modem Bohe-
mian renaissance.
Although Bohemia had remained neutral, or
rather had supported Austria, during the Na-
poleonic wars, her institutions suffered greatly
during the generation that Metternich stood
over the Hapsburgs' possessions and forced
them into the narrow path of his own reaction-
ary and conservative policy. Count Liitzow
remarks concerning this period : ' ' The admin-
istration of the Hapsburg dominions — with
the exception of Hungary — was founded on a
system of severest absolutism during the years
that followed the general pacification of 1815.
The liberty of the subject became entirely de-
pendent on the arbitrariness of an omnipotent
police. Countless government spies watched
over even the most insignificant acts of the citi-
zens. A double system of ' censure ' — one
political and the other ecclesiastical — ren-
End of Bohemian Independence 131
dered it impossible to express in print any
opinions that were not in strict accordance with
the views of the government at Vienna. While
the despotism of Vienna pressed heavily on all
parts of the empire, its oppression was felt
more heavUy in Bohemia than elsewhere; for
not only were individuals deprived of all lib-
erty, but the national language — so sacred
to all Bohemians — was excluded from every
school, law-court, or government in the coun-
try."!
Francis was succeeded by Ferdinand IV
(1835-1848), who, like his predecessor, left the
administration of the government to Metter-
nich, the apostle of repression. So far as pos-
sible the premier kept from the ears of his
sovereign the growing discontent of all classes
of society; but with the breakdown of the Or-
leanist monarchy in France in 1848, and the
constitutional movement which it inaugurated
in Europe, revolutions broke out among the
Magyars in Hungary, the Grermans in Austria,
the Cechs in Bohemia, and the Italians in Ven-
ice and Milan. Ferdinand attempted to save
his crown by the dismissal of Metternich, the
1 Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count Lutzow. New
York and London, 1910.
132 Bohemia and the Cechs
abolition of press censorship, and the rehabil-
itation of the Bohemian constitution and na-
tional parliament — an empty promise based
on mental reservation — but it was too late.
' ' Your Highness, we have nothing against your
person, but everything against your system,"
said one of the civic deputies in Vienna, " and
we must repeat, your abdication alone can save
the throne and the monarchy." The feeble and
yielding Ferdinand was forced to resign, and
the crown passed to Francis Joseph, the pres-
ent venerable and esteemed incumbent, who has
been king of Bohemia and emperor of Austria
since 1848. The heir-presumptive to the throne
is Archduke Frantisek Ferdinand, son of the
late Archduke Charles Louis and the Princess
Annunciata. He married in 1900 the Countess
Sophia Chotek (now princess of Hohenberg).
CHAPTER Vn
MODEBN BOHEMIAN BENAISSAKOB
Effect of the edict of religious toleration — The nobiUty and
the modern movement — Foundation of the Bohemian Na-
tional Museum — Literary activities — Jungmann and Pa-
lack^ — Historic rights of the people emphasized — Tragic
career of Karel HavhcSek — The refusal to form part of the
German confederacy — The pan-Slav congress at Prague —
Revolution of 1848 and its consequences — The concordat
of 1855 — Austrian defeats — Proposed national parUament —
An Austrian bureaucrat — Constitution of 1861 — The Aus-
gleich of 1867 — Cisleithanian parliament — Declaration of
the historic rights of the Bohemians — The rump parUament
and its collapse — Efforts to conciliate the Bohemians —
Efforts to suppress the Slavs — More concessions — Bohemian
faculties in the university of Prague — Extension of the use
of the Bohemian language — The noisy pan-Germans —
Count Aehrenthal and the outlook.
The beginning of the modern Bohemian re-
naissance dates back to the time of Joseph II,
when the edict of religious toleration abolished
ecclesiastical despotism. Men once more began
. to think and to write in Bohemia ; and ' ' all the
rigours of the censorship of Metternich," re-
marks Denis, " failed to stop the first flowers
of Bohemian literature from blossoming. ' ' An
account of Bohemian literature will be given
in a later chapter ; but it may be remarked in
this connection that the devotion of a handful
133
134 Bohemia and the Cechs
of literary men — Jungmann, KoUar, Saf af ik,
and Palacky — revived the faith of the enlight-
ened members of the Bohemian nobility in their
fatherland; and the noblemen protected the
young patriots, who otherwise would have been
exiled from the country or thrown into prison
through the despotism of Metternich and the
tools he employed to maintain government by
repression.
Concerning the role played by the Bohemian
nobility in the early stages of the modem re-
naissance, Count Liitzow ^ says : " As the Aus-
trian police had at that time the power of ex-
pelling from any town those who were not
either residents there or able to prove that they
had suflScient means of livelihood, the patriots,
who were very poor, and some of them had
come to Prague from other parts of the empire,
were exposed to constant persecution on the
part of the police. Several patriotic noblemen
assured the safety of the young enthusiasts by
conferring on them appointments as librarians
or tutors in their families. ' '
The foundation of the Society of the Bohe-
mian National Museum in 1818 marks the be-
' Bohemia: an historical sketch. By Count LQtzow. London
and New York, 1910.
Modern Bohemian Renaissance 135
ginning of an organized movement for the revi-
val of the suppressed national institutions.
But the movement continued distinctly literary
for many years, since that was the only direc-
tion it could safely take under a government of
the absolutist nature of that of Austria. The
proceedings of the museum were originally pub-
lished in both German and Bohemian, but the
German edition was soon discontinued. The
early activities of the museum were directed to
editing ancient Bohemian works which had been
made rare by the counter-reformation and the
wholesale destruction of books in the national
language by the Jesuits during the two cen-
turies that they were spiritual masters of the
kingdom. .
Manuscripts were collected; many ancient
songs were recovered ; an interest was aroused
in the study of the recovered fragments of lit-
erature which dated back to a comparatively
early period, and, more important than all, an
acquaintance was made with the splendid past
history of their country, which contributed in
such a large measure to revive the patriotism
of the people. These and like movements
aroused that passionate desire for liberty which
had always characterized the Bohemian people
136 Bohemia and the Cechs
before the disastrous -battle of the White Moun-
tain. The leaders of the new movement were
at first philologists and poets ; but by the mid-
dle of the century they gave way to historians
and jurists, and in our own day these in turn
have been superseded by constructive states-
men and captains of industry.
The literary movement gathered strength
slowly during the opening years of the nine-
teenth century. Jungmann is said to have re-
marked to a couple of fellow patriots who were
paying him a call, ' ' It would only require that
the ceiling of this house should fall in and there
would be an end of Bohemian literature. ' ' Not
only had the national literature been superseded
by the German, but the national tongue had
likewise been displaced by the German, which
was the required language of the schools. The
Bohemian continued to be spoken by the peas-
ants and the occupants of the small villages,
but in the cities and towns the German had
acquired complete supremacy. An anecdote is
related of the early days of the renaissance,
when a friend of Jungmann rushed to his room
to tell him that two well-dressed men had been
heard speaking the Bohemian on the streets of
Prague.
Modern Bohemian Renaissance 137
By the early forties of the last century, how-
ever, historic traditions were once more re-
established and the literary movement had
attained such strength that the Bohemian pa-
triots began to agitate for the restoration of
their political rights, which had been largely
suppressed during the decades that followed
the battle of the White Iklountain. Their in-
spiration came at first from Herder and the
French rationalists; and their early political
programme, which expressed the yearnings of
the nation for emancipation, developed into a
pan- Slav cult which aroused the suspicions and
enmity of the German minority in the country.
' ' The Germans hastened to discover high trea-
son in this Platonic association with the other
Slavs," remarks a Bohemian historian, " and
seized on the spectre of Russia as a political
weapon in their campaign for supremacy. ' '
Paldcky was the first of the patriots to " re-
linquish the delusive vision of the pan-Slav
myth. ' ' He made the historic rights of the Bo-
hemian people and a return to the constitution
of 1627 the chief planks in his political pro-
gramme ; and there rallied to his support a na-
tional party composed in the main of ' ' peasants
and artisans who were discontented with the
138 Bohemia and the Cechs
selfishness of their middle-class employers,
most of whom had German predilections and
were. on many points Jews or Judaisers." The
nobles were essentially German and Austrian
in spirit ; and while they furthered the national
movement so long as it was distinctly literary,
they were not willing to go very far in the as-
sertion of Bohemian historic rights. As pointed
out in previous chapters, the native Bohemian
nobility had been largely exterminated, during
the period of reaction that followed the close
of the Thirty Years' War, and they never
shared the aspirations of the Bohemian patri-
ots for the recovery of complete independence.
One of many tragic episodes in the unequal
struggle which Bohemia was waging at this
time is the career of Karel Havlicek (1821-
1856), the patriot and statesman, who fell a
martyr to the cause of journalistic freedom.
The Bohemian national party was without a
journal to represent its cause; and Havlicek
founded for this purpose the Prague News
(Prazske Noviny). But as the Austrian cen-
sor prohibited all allusions to the internal af-
fairs of Bohemia, Havlicek resorted to strata-
gem and device, and published accounts of
conditions in Ireland, and the pressing need
Modern Bohemian Renaissance 139
there of such reforms as the equality of the
nationalities represented in the population, uni-
fication of the kingdom, equality of all before
the law, trial by the jury system, a responsible
ministry, a national assembly, and reform in
education. He later founded at Kutna Hora
the Slovan, but here as ia Prague he was sub-
jected to endless annoyances by the Austrian
censors. He was arrested on some trumped-up
charge, but acquitted; however the imperial
government evidently did not propose to tol-
erate the exposure of Bohemian wrongs under
the guise of Irish news, and Havlicek was taken
to the Tyrol, where he was imprisoned in a for-
tress until, broken in health, he was released
and died shortly afterwards.
At the meeting of the Germanic confederacy
called at Frankfurt in 1848, the Hapsburg dy-
nasty was invited to send six representatives,
and the Bohemian historian and statesman,
Frantisek Palacky, was invited to act as one
of the delegates. In his letter of declination he
said, " I am not a German but a Bohemian,
belonging to the Slav race. Whatever talent
I may possess is in the service of my own coun-
try. My nation is certainly a small one, but
it has always maintained its historical individ-
140 Bohemia and the Cechs
uality. The rulers of Bohemia have often been
on terms of intimacy with the German princes,
hut the Bohemian people have never considered
themselves as Germans." Palacky very prop-
erly refused to commit the Bohemians to the
pan-German movement which the Frankfurt
meeting was called to inaugurate.
Slavic politicians, as an off-set, called a con-
gress of representatives of the different Slavic
races to meet in Prague. But the Hungarian
government protested against the meeting of
a congress at which the Slavs of Hungary
should be represented. The call of the congress
admitted as delegates Slavs who were under
the rule of the house of Hapsburg; and, as
guests, representatives from other Slavic coun-
tries. By an accident the gathering degener-
ated into a riot which had " a large and dis-
astrous influence on the future of Bohemia."
Prince Windischgratz, the military commander
of Prague, looked with disfavour on the con-
gress, and it was well-known that he favoured
the forcible re-establishment of absolutism in
Bohemia. At the conclusion of a religious
service in one of the churches, attended by the
members of the congress, some Austrian sol-
diers on duty — who were entirely ignorant of
Modem Bohemian Renaissance 141
the Bohemian language — claimed that some of
the delegates had uttered insults against their
commander, and they forthwith began to fire
on the passers-by. A panic followed, there was
considerable rioting, and the houses of several
of the Bohemian patriots were plundered.
[Windischgratz, whom an English historian has
not inappropriately characterized as " the
butcher," withdrew his forces from the city
and concentrated them on a surrounding hill.
Under the pretext that shots had been fired
at his outposts he began a general bombard-
ment of the city, and the kingdom was again
placed under absolutist rule.
When Vienna rose in rebellion during the
revolutionary period of 1848, the Bohemian
deputies returned to Prague; but the coup
d'etat of 1849, which was the result of the co-
operation of the clerical and military forces
in the empire, brought the sovereign back, and
the powers of parliament were greatly cur-
tailed. An imperial police was organized for
the entire empire to up-root discontent. The
fiscal system was changed and the powers of
the diets much limited. German was made the
exclusive language. The concordat of 1855 pro-
claimed the doctrine of a Christian state for
142 Bohemia and the Cechs
the Hapsburg dominions. " The episcopate
and the clergy," remarks a Bohemian historian,
' ' formed a privileged class, and public instruc-
tion, whicii was open to them, was the principal
factor in their political ascendency. If they
sometimes abused their power, it cannot be
denied that they did what they could for pan-
Austrian unity. Evidently discontent was great
in the country of Hus, where radicalism gained
ground every day. Indignation grew before
the tyrannical orders issued by Bach from 1851
to 1856, rendering the German language obliga-
tory in Bohemia and Hungary as the medium
of public instruction. The courage of the rebel
had been lost, though no assistance was ren-
dered to the hated government which was in
the throes of a financial crisis. The want of
spirit displayed by the army in the unfortunate
campaign in Italy against a foe who, after all,
was the true, if unwise, champion of the na-
tional formula showed how things were going.
Defeat was, from one point of view, a blessing."
The concordat of 1855 gave the Roman Cath-
olic church unlimited control over all ecclesias-
tical and educational affairs, and absolutism
reigned in church and state. The Germaniza-
tion of Bohemia and Hungary was carried on
Modern Bohemian Renaissance 143
by a ruthless bureaucracy ; the Austrian police
interfered with courts of law; trial by jury
and the right of public trial were suppressed;
the liberty of the press was still more curtailed;
German was the only language in which the
newspapers of the empire could be printed;
municipal elections were suspended; the con-
dition of the imperial finances became chaotic,
and the deficit of the empire in 1859 was nearly
three hundred million florins.
The defeat that was a blessing to the Bohe-
mians, referred to in a preceding paragraph,
came from an imexpected source. The drastic
treatment of the Italians brought matters to
a crisis. Although Pope Pius IX had taken the
side of the Bohemians against the house of
Hapsburg in the struggle for constitutional lib-
erty in 1848, his own subjects made larger de-
mands for self-government than he was willing
to grant, and he was forced to fly to Naples in
the disguise of a footman, where he remained
until a French army restored Rome to him. A
French garrison remained in his capital to pro-
tect him against the attacks of the Italians.
War broke out in northern Italy in 1859; the
Austrian forces were defeated at Solferino and
Magenta, and expelled from Lombardy; the
144 Bohemia and the Cechs
pope lost all his territories beyond the Appe-
niiies; Sicily rebelled and drove the Bourbon
king from the country; Naples revolted, and
Victor Bimmanuel acquired the papal and
Hapsburg possessions and annexed them
to his dominions, taking the title of king of
Italy.i
The loss of the Italian provinces was a crush-
ing blow to absolutism; and, to avert further
disasters, the government at Vienna decided
upon the establishment of representative insti-
tutions of some sort. Bach, the apostle of abso-
lutism, was dismissed, and Count Goluchowski
attempted to organize the variegated empire
along more liberal lines. A new constitutional
scheme was promulgated in 1860 which pro-
vided for an imperial assembly composed of
delegates from all the states of the dynasty, to
which extensive powers were granted. The
members of the assembly were to be selected
by the national diets of the different states,
each state sending the number that corre-
sponded to its numerical strength in the empire
— Hungary, eighty-five; Bohemia (and Mo-
ravia), seventy-six; Galicia, thirty-eight ; Aus-
1 See the Author's Sicily, the Garden of the Mediterranean.
Boston and London, 1909.
Modern Bohemian Renaissance 145
tria, twenty-eight; Transylvania, twenty-six,
and Venetia (the Italian province still belong-
ing to the house of Hapsburg), twenty. Hun-
gary and some of the other states refused to
send representatives to the imperial parlia-
ment, so that when it assembled in Vienna, it
contained two hundred instead of three hun-
dred and fifty deputies. The Hungarians not
only refused to send deputies, but declared
that all acts done by the parliament without
their consent were null and void, and refused
to pay taxes which their own diet had not
voted.
Count Groluchowski retired from the ministry
and was succeeded by Baron Schmerling, an
Austrian bureaucrat of the Metternich and
Bach school. A new constitution was promul-
gated ia 1861 and certain concessions made to
Hungary. Provision was made for a new par-
liament to be composed of an upper and a lower
chamber. The emperor reserved the right to
select his own ministers and the members of
the upper chamber. As there was no manhood
suffrage in the empire, clever manipulation of
the electoral power placed the German minority
in Bohemia in control of the delegation. It was
provided that there should be three classes of
146 Bohemia and the Cechs
electors — the large landowners, the townsmen,
and the rural voters. As the Germans lived in
the towns and the Bohemians in the country,
it was stipulated that there should be one dep-
uty for every two thousand five hundred elec-
tors in the towns, and one for every twenty-five
thousand electors in the rural districts. The
landowners, who formed a class by themselves,
were given proportionately larger representa-
tion than the townsmen; and as they, like the
latter, were chiefly Germans, the Bohemians
had practically no representation. There were
other manipulations of the electorate which
sought the disfranchisement of the Bohemians.
The German hamlet of Parchen, with five hun-
dred inhabitants, was allowed one deputy, while
the Cech town of Kladno, with eight thousand
inhabitants, had none. This manifestly unfair
manipulation of the electorate is still one of
the grievances against the Austrian govern-
ment. The constant effort of the officials at
Vienna is to keep the balance of power in the
hands of a German minority.
The discontent of the Bohemians and the
Hungarians resulted in the dismissal of Schmer-
ling and the appointment of Count Belcredi.
But the defeat of the Austrian forces by the
Modem Bohemian Renaissance 147
Prussians in the battle of Kralove Hradec
(known to English and American readers as
the battle of Sadowa) in 1866, and the grow-
ing hostility of the Hungarians, placed Baron
Beust at the head of the government. ' ' Look-
ing round on the Austrian dominions, ' ' remark
the Colquhouns,^ Beust saw no way of hold-
ing the discordant states under the Hapsburg
dynasty ' ' except by securing the loyalty of the
strongest of the different sections. This he be-
lieved to be Hungary. ' ' The Ausgleich of 1867
established the political independence of Hun-
gary, and the emperor was crowned at Buda-
pest as a constitutional king.
Two parliaments were now established, one
at Vienna for Austria, Bohemia, and the other
Cisleithanian states, and the other at Buda-
pest for Hungary and the Transleithanian
provinces. The Bohemians had not been con-
sulted in the union of Austria and Hungary,
yet that union resulted in a financial change
which threw the burden on the richest indus-
trial districts in Bohemia. They refused, in
consequence, to send delegates to the new cen-
tral parliament at Vienna. Some beneficent
1 The whirlpool of Europe. By Archibald R. and Ethel Col-
quhoun. New York, 1907.
148 Bohemia and the Cechs
measures were passed by the first Cisleithanian
parliament which improved conditions in all
of the states of the Hapsburg empire. The
concordat of 1855, which had brought the coun-
try to the verge of financial ruin and had inau-
gurated a reactionary policy which caused
widespread discontent, was abrogated ; educa-
tion was released from the authority of the
church ; trial by jury was restored ; the juris-
diction of marriages was limited to the civil
courts, and the right of public assemblage was
conceded.
In 1868 the Bohemians issued a declaration
of their historic rights, which continues to be
the central plank of their political platform.
They declared: (1) Between Bohemia and the
sovereign there exist mutual rights and duties
which are equally binding on both parties; (2)
Austria is not one undivided kingdom — the
kingdom of Bohemia is attached to the rest of
the empire by a purely personal tie; (3) no
alteration in this state of things can be made
except by a new contract between the kingdom
and the dynasty; (4) no assembly, reichsrath,
or chamber of deputies foreign to Bohemia can
impose^on the kingdom the debts of the empire
or any other public burdens; (5) the Hunga-
Modern Bohemian Renaissance 149
rians have a right to treat with the sovereign
concerniag their own interests, but not those of
Bohemia; (6) Cisleithania is a division of the
country which has no historical foundation, and
Bohemia is not bound to send deputies to a Cis-
leithanian assembly, and (7) the constitutional
questions now pending between the sovereign
and the Bohemian nation ought to be regulated
by common agreement and the political repre-
sentatives of Bohemia should be chosen on the
basis of a just electoral law and an honest elec-
tion.
The rump parliament composed almost en-
tirely of Germans retaliated by abrogating the
law of 1864 which permitted the use of the Cech
language in the schools of Bohemia; but the
Germans found it impossible to run the gov-
ernment without the aid of the Bohemians and
Moravians, and the ministry of Beust fell in
1871. Whether in holding to their historic
rights so tenaciously they did not sacrifice a
practical opportunity for the nominal revival
of their independence, is a question that has
been asked by not a few American and English
students of contemporary history. Their co-
operation was absolutely necessary for the
forking of the new parliament, so that even the
150 Bohemia and the Cechs
ultra-Grermans of Austria would have been
forced to make concessions to them. But this
opportunity they missed.
During the brief ministry of Count Potocki
the Bohemians continued the policy of non-par-
ticipation in the parliament, and Count Hohen-
warth was called to the ministry in the hope
that he might conciliate the Bohemians. He fa-
voured the federalist policy which the Cechs
had demanded and induced the emperor to rec-
ognize the " historic rights " of the Bohemians
and to be crowned king of Bohemia at Prague.
The Germans and the Magyars opposed these
measures with so much bitterness that Hohen-
warth was superseded by Prince Adolph Auers-
berg, whose only conception of government was
' ' a state founded upon the regulations and en-
forcement of military discipline." The reign
of police intimidation was restored at Prague
and the Bohemians were persecuted with fresh
vigour. The liberty of the press was with-
drawn; right of assembly was denied, and, by
an underhand manipulation of the electorate,
the G-ermans secured a majority in the diets
at Prague and Brno, and sent German deputies
to represent Bohemia at the parliament in Vi-
enna.
Modern Bohemian Renaissance I5i
During Prince Auersberg's ministry repeated
efforts were made to suppress the Slav element
in the Bohemian population; but, remarks an
English historian, " it became more obvious
that this was impossible. Where absolute gov-
ernment had failed, a government that had even
slight pretensions to be considered a constitu-
tional one could not succeed. It is, indeed,
worthy of note that during these years of deter-
mined opposition the Slav element in Bohemia
constantly increased in strength. Bohemian
literature and journalism became every year
more extensive, and the language gradually ob-
tained a scientific terminology, which rendered
the subsequent establishment of a national uni-
versity possible. ' '
The reactionary ministry of Prince Auers-
berg fell in 1879 and he was followed by Count
Taafe, who secured a modification of the unfair
electorate system, with the result that large
numbers of Bohemian deputies were sent to the
parliament at Vienna. The new minister was
broad-minded and selected a non-partisan cab-
inet. By a combination with the clerical depu-
ties, who wished to reduce the compulsory
school period and secure for the clergy a larger
measure of control over educational matters.
152 Bohemia and the Cechs
and the augmented Bohemian delegation, Taaf e
secured a working majority.
The immediate concessions made to the Bo-
hemians were (1) more extensive use of the
Bohemian language in law courts ; (2) a change
of the system of voting in chambers of com-
merce, which gave the Cechs a majority in most
of the Bohemian cities, and (3) the organiza-
tion of Bohemian faculties in the university of
Prague. The fact that German was the sole
language in many of the courts of law, and that
many of the legal officials did not know the
Cech language, had worked great hardships on
the people of the kingdom, the majority of
whom did not understand the German. Cham-
bers of commerce in the cities constitute a sep-
arate element of the electorate, and the laws had
been formulated with a view of giving a large
representation to German precincts, but a small
one to districts where the Bohemians had the
majority.
The university of Prague, although organized
and maintained by the Bohemians, like all the
other mediaeval seats of higher learning, em-
ployed the Latin language as the medium of
instruction; but when the Latin tongue fell into
disuse German reactionaries were in control of
Modern Bohemian Renaissance 153
Bohemia, and German was made the exclusive
language of the university. In spite of the fact
that Bohemians constituted more than three-
fourths of the student body, the Austrian au-
thority for more than half a century had turned
a deaf ear to the demands of the national party.
In 1882 the Taafe government authorized the
organization of Bohemian faculties in the uni-
versity, and thus made higher education in
their mother tongue possible to large numbers
of Bohemian youths. The Bohemian division
of the university takes rank to-day as one of
the leading higher institutions of learning in
Europe, while the German section, both in nu-
merical strength and academic rank, has been
relegated to a secondary place among German
universities.
The Bohemians have gained enormously in
the right to use their own language in their own
country, but every inch of this ground has been
won after stubborn fights with the Germans.
In 1886 the Cechs were given permission to use
their language in certain lower courts without
translation into the German. This exasperated
the latter, and they attempted to pass a law
dividing the two races into separate adminis-
trative and judicial groups, both German and
154 Bohemia and the Cechs
Bohemian being compulsory in the Cech dis-
tricts, but only the former in the German dis-
tricts. This legislation the young Cechs were
able to defeat, but the German party gave way
to most disorderly scenes in parliament.
After fourteen years of service Taafe was
succeeded in 1893, first by Count Kielmansegge,
whose ministry marked time a few months, and
next by Count Badeni. The latter secured the
enactment of a law which required of aU gov-
ernment officials in Bohemia a knowledge of
both the German and the Bohemian languages.
The noisy pan-Germans again produced the
most turbulent scenes in the parliament at Vi-
enna, which the late Samuel L. Clemens (Mark
Twain) has so graphically described for Amer-
ican readers in his essay on " Stirring times
in Austria." There were riots in Vienna,
Prague, and Cheb (Eger) ; and Badeni was suc-
ceeded by Baron Goluchowski. He attempted
to smooth matters over by the division of Bo-
hemia into German, Bohemian, and mixed dis-
tricts; but his refusal to withdraw the lan-
guage measure passed under the Badeni min-
istry angered the Germans, and the Bohemians
were displeased with the territorial limitations
which he instituted.
Modem Bohemian Renaissance 155
Count Aehrenthal took charge of the un-
steady ship of state in 1906. He is recognized
as an able statesman, but his well-known pan-
Germanic sympathies can scarcely make him
acceptable to the Bohemians. His seizure of
Bosnia and Herzegoviua, at a time when Turkey
was engaged in house-cleaning, is universally
regarded (outside of Austria and Germany) as
an act of which no great statesman would be
guilty. Austria had been in charge of these
provinces since the conference of the Great
Powers at Berlin in 1876,^ with the understand-
ing that they were to be returned to Turkey
when she gave proof that she could administer
them properly. With the advent of a rejuve-
nated Ottoman empire. Count Aehrenthal re-
solved to convert the temporary possession into
legal ownership. With the backing of Ger-
many, the tacit consent of Italy, and the con-
sciousness that Russia was powerless to protest
against this act of aggression, and in the face
of the opposition of England and France, he
was able to inflict this wrong on Turkey.
'See the Author's Turkey and the Turks: an account of the
lands, the peoples, and the institutions of the Ottoman empire.
Second edition, revised and enlarged, Boston and London, 1909,
CHAPTER VIII
THE BOHEMIAliT PEOPLE
Earliest traces of Slavic peoples in Eiirope — Divisions of the
Slavic families — Bohemians first in point of culture — Eth-
nic characteristics — Prominent physical features — National
costumes — Handks and Hordks — Not a religious people
— Relation of church and state — Punishment for sacrilege in
Bohemia — Love for music — Marriage and Divorce —
Industry and intelligence — Reading habits of the people
— Civic and philanthropic institutions — Government —
Parliament of the kingdom — Inequalities in the electorate
— Numerous political parties — Favours shown the Germans
— Jews and business — Administration of justice — Austrian
officials — Compulsory military service — Taxation and the
imperial budget — The monetary unit — Material progress
of the Bohemians.
The Slavic races in the early historic period
occupied the la'nds between the Caspian, Black,
and Baltic seas, and they formed the most
northern outposts of the Aryan stock. Their
physical characteristics were varied, and about
all the early writers say of them is that the
majority had broad skulls, full beards, and
were of good stature. These agricultural and
nomadic tribes were the forebears of the great
Slavic families of Europe to-day, numbering
156
The Bohemian People 157
now between one hundred and twenty-five and
one hundred and fifty million people.
The eastern division of the Slavic family in-
cludes the Great Eussians, the Little Russians,
and the White Russians ; in the south are the
Servians, Croatians, Bosnians, Montenegrins,
Slavonians, Dalmatians, and Bulgarians, and in
the west are the Bohemians, Moravians, Slo-
vaks, and the Serbs of the two Lusatias. The
word Slavic means " people of the same
race."
The Bohemian race was the first to attain, a
commanding position among the culture-peo-
ples of central Europe. How early they settled
upon the lands which they occupy to-day can-
not be stated with any degree of certainty —
probably before the Christian era. WhUe ac-
cepting the Christian religion much later than
most of the nations of Europe, their civilization
attained a higher form of development at an
early period than that of the German and other
neighbouring races.
The Bohemians, like the other members of
the Slavic family, and in this not unlike most
of the ethnic stocks of Europe, represent a high
degree of race mixture ; and, while they do not
like to admit it, it is probably true that the
158 Bohemia and the Cechs
Cechs of to-day represent a relatively strong
infusion of Teutonic blood. And at an early
period in the history of the race there may have
been somi intermingling of the Slavic stocks
with the Mongolians.
The proportion of blonds among the Bohe-
mians is greater than among the other Slavic
races, but not so great as among the Germans.
The cheek bonies are a bit more prominent than
among the other Aryans of western Europe,
and the eyes are farther apart. They are not a
distinctly handsome people, the head of the men
being too large for the stunted body, and they
lack the beauty of features and the elegance
of figure possessed by many of the Aryans in
southern and western Europe. The Bohe-
mian women, on the other hand, have finer
figures.
National costumes have largely disappeared
among the Bohemians, but are retained in a
much larger measure in Moravia. At Domaz-
lice (Taus), however, the women in the rural
districts continue to wear the handsome na-
tional dress — red bodices, short petticoats, red
stockings, and figured kerchiefs for head ap-
parel.
Also in Moravia the costumes of a by-gone
BOHEMIAN PEASANTS AT DOMAZLICB.
The Bohemian People 159
age are still much worn by the Hanaks and
Horaks. About four hundred thousand Han-
aks live in the valleys of eastern Moravia that
slope toward the Morava river. The men wear
yellow leather pantaloons, curiously embroid-
ered belts, richly ornamented cloth jackets,
white or blue coats with several layers of col-
lars one above the other, and black hats with
red or yellow ribbons.
In mental and moral characteristics the Bo-
hemian traits are not unlike those found among
Teutonic peoples in Germany, England, and
America. Family life is strong among them
they have a keen sense of personal honour
they are characterized by great hospitality
they are passionately devoted to the welfare
of their country ; high standards of cleanliness
are maintained by all classes of society; they
are frugal and industrious; and, while they
are reasonably scrupulous in the observ-
ance of religious rites and ceremonies, it
may well be questioned whether in modern
times they are a profoundly religious peo-
ple.
Professor Edward A. Steiner states that,
while the Bohemians represent the finest types
of Europeans who come to America in large
160 Bohemia and the Cechs
numbers, they are the most irreligious of all
our immigrants. Two-thirds of the one hun-
dred thousand Bohemians ra Chicago, he says,
have forsaken the Roman Catholic church and
drifted into the free-thought of Thomas Paine
and Robert IngersoU. " Nowhere else have I
heard their doctrines so boldly preached or
seen their conclusions so readily accepted ; and
I have it on the authority of Mr. Geringer, the
editor of Svornost, that there are in Chicago
alone three hundred societies that teach infidel-
ity, that carry on propaganda for their unbe-
lief, and that maintain Sunday schools in which
the attendance ranges from thirty to three
thousand. ' ' ^
On the other hand it is universally agreed
that these same people make exemplary Ameri-
can citizens. A prominent professional man in
Chicago who has had wide experience with the
Bohemians in that city writes me: " The Bo-
hemians are not naturally a religious people,
at least, if by religion one means anything like
mysticism. They are inclined to believe what
they see and are sure of. They come to Amer-
ica to make a living and they generally succeed.
* Bohemians in America. By Edward A. Steiner. The Outlook,
25th of April, 1903. Vol. 73, pp. 968-973.
The Bohemian People 161
The material side of life is the one that chiefly
interests them. They are, however, industri-
ous and thrifty, and I regard them as excep-
tionally honest in their dealings. I doubt
whether any foreign nationality prizes more
highly what this country stands for, or more
willingly contributes to its advancement,
than the Bohemian people in the United
States."
One is at loss, however, for an explanation
of Bohemian character which makes them ap-
parently religious in the fatherland and dis-
tinctly non-religious in the United States ; and
the leaders whom I have consulted have not
thrown very much light on the problem. Some
attribute it to the close alliance between the
Hapsburg dynasty and the dominant church;
others to the persecutions of the fifteenth and
seventeenth centuries, and still others to the
mental characteristic of the Bohemians re-
ferred to by the gentleman already quoted, viz.,
that they do not take naturally to doctrines of
spiritual things not readily analyzed and ex-
plained by the intellect.
It may well be questioned whether the close al-
liance of church and state which has prevailed
for so many centuries in the Hapsburg do-
162 Bohemia and the Cechs
minions has, in the long run, benefited religion ;
and whether the zeal with which state ofl&cials
continue to exercise the enforcement of relig-
ious observances does not in the end defeat its
purpose. My attention was recently called to
an item in one of the most trustworthy journals
published in America (The Evening Post of
New York) : A grocer in one of the Hapsburg
states bought a package of old newspapers to
wrap her wares in, among which were some
copies of a Jesuit organ called the Messenger
of the Heart on which various religious illus-
trations were printed. One of the government
officials visited the shop and warned her not
to pack her goods in such paper. She accepted
the warning, and gave him all the sheets she
could find. A few days later he returned with
a policeman, searched the shop and found some
sugar wrapped in sheets of the Messenger.
She was thereupon prosecuted for " ridiculing
an institution of the Catholic church," and
despite her defence that the incriminating pack-
age had been made before she had received the
warniug, she was condemned to seven days' im-
prisonment and one day's fasting. An appeal
was made to the supreme court at Vienna on
the ground that the religious paper had not
The Bohemian People 163
been consecrated, and that the woman had not
used the paper with sacrilegious intent; but
the higher court sustained the original sentence
in all particulars.
As the accuracy of the item was called in
question in America, I sent it to a Bohemian
lawyer with instructions to forward the same
to a colleague in the town where the incident
was reputed to have occurred, and ascertain the
correctness of the statements. He replied that
the item was correct in all particulars, and sent
me a copy of an Austrian legal journal {Ge-
richtshalle) which gave the facts exactly as
they had been related in The Evening Post.
The legal journal expresses surprise at the fre-
quency of such interpretations of the law, and
adds that " if such decisions continue to be
made in our country, the matter will* end by
driving large numbers of religious people into
irreligious camps."
Standards of sexual morality in Bohemia
are relatively high and crime statistics are low.
Education is widespread, and the passion for
learning is great among all classes of society.
Students of statistics will recall that among the
various races from the Hapsburg empire that
come to America, Bohemia furnishes the low-
164 Bohemia and the Cechs
est percentage of illiteracy and the highest per-
centage of skilled labourers. No expense is
spared to rid the kingdom of the blight of illit-
eracy; and, as will be shown in a subsequent
chapter on education, the Bohemians have
erected excellent school buildings and estab-
lished a fine system of education notwithstand-
ing innumerable obstacles.
In spite of the fact that the Bohemians have
been accused of lack of deep interest in the
spiritual aspects of religion, in matters of taste
and skill in the fine arts, their rank is very high
indeed. The love for music of a high order is
universal in the kingdom; and the extraordi-
nary development in the other creative arts —
literature, painting, and sculpture — indicates
a range of artistic pursuits and an extent of
artistic "ability that is unsurpassed among the
culture-nations of Europe. In an article on the
amazing developments of the Bohemian renais-
sance of the last twenty-five years, in referring
to the losing fight of the G-ermans to keep their
language and literature on an equality with that
of the Cechs, a leading American literary re-
view remarks: " The German language and
literature and German science and art are not
being wiped out by a new sort of barbarian
The Bohemian People 165
invasion, but effectively replaced by a Slav
culture. ' ' ^
As might be expected in a country where
about ninety per cent, of the people are Eoman
Catholics, divorces are not common; for while
Catholic married couples may be separated
from bed and board, no dissolution of the mar-
riage bond can take place. But the legal im-
pediments to marriage in Bohemia are numer-
ous, and if the officials having charge of the
matter effectively cross-question candidates
who are about to enter into the marriage con-
tract, it would make divorces in considerable
numbers unnecessary. Some of the impedi-
ments are mental diseases (a reasonably liberal
list) ; minority and consent of guardian ; mis-
take of identity of the future consort; preg-
nancy of the woman before marriage to another
person ; moral disability, such as an unexpired
felony; difference of religion (Christians and
non-Christians are not allowed to marry) ; ex-
isting previous marriage ; close family connec-
tions, such as brothers and sisters, cousins,
uncle and niece, aunt and nephew; adultery
proven before contracting the new marriage;
* The Hapsbia-g monarchy and the Slavs. The Nation, Deo.
3, 1908.
166 Bohemia and the Cechs
consecration to religious orders and vows of
celibacy. Widows in Bohemia must wait six
months after the death of husbands before they
can remarry, although no such impediment is
placed in the way of widowers.
Sidney Whitman ^ pays this tribute to the
sturdy qualities of the Bohemians : ' ' They are
active, industrious, and intelligent. As work-
ing men we are assured that they are generally
superior to their German co-nationalists ; they
are more dUigent, more thrifty, and take
greater pride and interest in their work, what-
ever it may be. And the same testimony is
given of the Cech peasant. They are imbued
with a strong national and race feeling. They
read the papers and follow every political de-
velopment with avidity. They utilize every
occasion to make propaganda for their nation-
ality, and are so successful in this at home that
many of the present generation of the Bohe-
mians, whose parents were German, some of
them even unacquainted with the Slavonic
tongue — notably working men and mechanics
— are now thorough-going Cechs." And an
English traveller says of them: " Hard work-
'The realin of the Hapsburgs. By Sidney Whitman. New
York, n. d.
The Bohemian People 167
ing and intelligent, they represent one of the
most valuable factors in the development of
modern Austria; and the high position held
by many of them in industry, in the university,
and in literature, art, and music, proves con-
clusively that they are no unworthy descend-
ants of the old Bohemian reformers whose mis-
fortune it was to have been born a few centuries
in advance of their time." *
The Bohemians both in the home country and
the United States are a reading people. The
American Consul at Prague informed me last
summer that a hundred thousand dollars'
worth of Cech books passed through his con-
sulate to this country annually. While public
libraries are less numerous in the small towns
and villages than in America, the traveller is
everywhere impressed with the zeal for and the
familiarity with the best national literature.
It is, I believe, generally conceded by stu-
dents of contemporary history, that the jour-
nals and reviews of Bohemia are of an excep-
tionally meritorious character and that they
have had far-reaching influence in the intellec-
tual emancipation of the people. There are
* Austro-Hungarian Kfe in town and country. By Francis H
E. Palmer. New York, 1903.
168 Bohemia and the Cechs
something like five hundred newspapers pub-
lished in the kingdom, about a fifth of which are
dailies and. the remainder weeklies, monthlies,
and quarterlies. The illustrated journals in
particular strike the foreigner as possessing
unusual artistic talent and skill.
In the development of the civic and philan-
thropic institutions of their country, the Bohe-
mians have not had a free hand, but have been
balked at every turn by the imperial govern-
ment. The care of the dependents, delinquents,
and defectives is in the main in the hands of
officers selected by the authorities at Vienna,
although the Bohemians bear the monetary bur-
dens. Even local government is not free from
the interference of the crown. Each town has
a council to deliberate and decide municipal
affairs, and a committee to administer them.
But a corporation, with special statutes, may
take the place of the communal conamittee. Dis-
trict representative bodies are interposed be-
tween the diet of the kingdom and the municipal
council. It consists of representatives of the
great estates, the towns and chambers of com-
merce, the most highly taxed trades and indus-
tries, and the rural communities. It decides
many of the affairs of the district, such as tax-
The Bohemian People 169
ation, agriculture, schools, ecclesiastical and
charitable institutions, and public works.
The diet or national parliament of the king-
dom, one of the oldest of existing Bohemian
institutions, has been deprived of no incon-
siderable part of its ancient rights and duties,
the restoration of which is one jof the causes
of frequent conflict between the Bohemian peo-
ple and the imperial government. The diet has
but one chamber and is composed of the Roman
Catholic archbishop and bishops, the rectors
of the Bohemian and German faculties of the
universities, — these by virtue of their offices,
— representatives of the large estates elected
by land owners paying tax of from one hun-
dred to five hundred crowns according to the
location of their estates, representatives of the
towns who possess municipal privileges or pay
a certain amount of direct tax, representatives
of chambers of commerce and industry chosen
by their respective members, and representa-
tives of the rural communities chosen by elec-
tors who pay eight or more crowns a year of
direct taxes. Deputies are elected for six
years and the diet is supposed to hold annual
sessions.
Bohemia, however, enjoys a very limited
170 Bohemia and the Cechs
measure of autonomy, and most of its impor-
tant affairs are determined by the crown or
the Cisleithanian parliament at Vienna. Here
again the inequalities in the electorate are
keenly apparent. Five thousand four hundred
great landlords, for example, elect eighty-five
of the deputies; five hundred and eighty-
three members of chambers of commerce elect
twenty-one deputies; four hundred thousand
city electors choose one hundred and eighteen
deputies; nearly a million and a half rural
electors select only one hundred and twenty-
nine, and the fifth curia, or universal suffrage,
seventy-two. The crown exercises a larger
measure of control in the affairs of the Haps-
burg empire than in most other European con-
stitutional monarchies. The sovereign not in-
frequently refuses to sanction bills passed by
both houses of parliament; and the ministers
are the servants of the crown rather than of
parliament.
Political parties in Bohemia are almost as
numerous as " the sands on the sea-shore," and
the lack of national cohesion sometimes op-
erates imfavourably on the interests of the
kingdom. The Old Cech party is distinctly con-
servative but no longer plays an important role
The Bohemian People 171
in the affairs of the nation. The Young Cechs
are hoth liberal and progressive and they
gained power by abandoning the attitude of
passive resistance and assuming an aggressive
political campaign. Then there is the Agrarian
party, large but not very influential ; the Social
Democratic party, which grows in power with
the industrial development of Bohemia; the
Christian Socialist party, which is anti-Semitic ;
the National Social party, which is anti-mili-
tary in its sentiments; the Clerical or Chris-
tian party, and the Eealistic party, composed
of the academic people.
As already noted, preponderance given to
landed and monied interests precludes repre-
sentation ia any democratic sense. Formerly,
at least, the assemblage of the Germans in the
towns gave them an unfair advantage over the
Bohemians, who lived chiefly in the country.
Not only were they favoured in the matter of
representation as townsmen, but also as mem-
bers of chambers of commerce; and by coali-
tions with the strong conservative elements in
church and with the Hebrews, the politics of
Bohemia were directed in channels favourable
to the preservation of German influence and
interest. But all this is changing with the ex-
172 Bohemia and the Cechs
traordinary oommercial and industrial activ-
ity of the Cechs. It was less than thirty years
ago that F. Marion Crawford, the American
author, described Prague as " the stronghold
of the Israelite, whence he directs great enter-
prises and sets in motion huge financial
schemes, in which Israel sits, as a great spider
in the midst of a dark web, dominating the
whole capital with the eagle 's glance and weav-
ing the destiny of the Bohemian people to suit
his intricate speculations; for throughout the
length and breadth of Slavonic and German
Austria the Jew rules, and rules alone. ' ' How-
ever true this may have been in former decades,
it is widely recognized that both Germans and
Hebrews are playing a losing game, not only
in language, literature, and the fine arts, but
in all departments of productive industry, and
that the enormous drift towards the cities is
giving the Bohemians increased electoral pow-
ers both as townsmen and as members of cham-
bers of commerce.
Justice in the kingdom is administered (1)
by special courts of commerce, industry, and
the military; (2) by county and provincial
courts, and (3) by a supreme court of justice
and court of cassation at Vienna. Chambers
The Bohemian People 173
of commerce play a large role in the judicial
affairs of the kingdom. But the fact that the
judiciary is so largely in the hands of Austrian
bureaucrats is one of the standing grievances
of the Bohemians. "The lack of original-
ity and initiative which are apparent in the
educated Austrian," remark the Colquhouns,
" are increased tenfold by an official training.
From the court, with its wearisome and elab-
orate etiquette, down to the merest municipal
offices, every one is weighted down with rules,
regulations and traditions, books of reference
and precedent that it seems impossible to move
them out of the narrow groove in which their
rainds are set." This incident is related by
these authors of the bureaucratic red tape pro-
cedure : A busy official had failed to make some
required entry in the consignment of some ar-
tillery; he was summoned before a court of
inquiry, followed by a lawyer and a stout porter
staggering under the load of thirty heavy vol-
umes; after arranging these before him, the
advocate addressed the court saying, " Gentle-
men, the regulation which my client has in-
fringed is in one of these volumes, but he is
still a young man; " result, acquittal! In the
days when the Austrians occupied northern
174 Bohemia and the Cechs
Italy, the Italians used to characterize them as
" the people who always want paper " (Che
vogliano la carta ).^
Military* service is compulsory ia Bohemia,
and liahility extends from the nineteenth to the
forty-second years, but actual service com-
mences in the twenty-first year. The usual con-
scription is three years, followed by seven
years in the reserve, but this may be reduced
to one year by university students and others
who attain a certain academic grade in sec-
ondary schools. The Austrian army is formed
on the German model and is said to have at-
tained a high degree of efficiency since the bat-
tle of Kralove Hradec. But the expense of
maintaining this large force of able-bodied
men, who are withdrawn from productive in-
dustries at the most remunerative periods of
their lives, is a heavy burden for Bohemia and
the other Hapsburg states.
Bohemia pays a proportionately large
amount of the taxation for the imperial bud-
get. Taxes include ground rent and mortgages,
industrial and commercial revenues, profes-
sional incomes, salaries and profits on farming,
' The whirlpool of Europe. By Archibald R. and Ethel Colqu-
houn. New York, 1907.
The Bohemian People 175
and interest on revenue from capital or un-
earned increment. The tax on personal in-
comes is progressive, iacomes below two hun-
dred and fifty dollars a year being immune.
The rate begins with six-tenths of one per cent,
and reaches five per cent, on incomes which
exceed fifty thousand dollars. More than half
of those who contribute to this source of rev-
enue, pay taxes on incomes of less than four
hundred dollars a year. The monetary unit
of Bohemia is the same as that of Austria —
the crown (krone). It is worth about twenty
cents in American money. One hundred heller
make a crown. The terms florins, gulden, and
kreiizers are still in use, and serve to cause
no little annoyance to the foreigner travelling
in the country.
The most striking characteristic of the Bohe-
mian people is the enormous progress they
have made during recent years in every depart-
ment of industrial activity. All visitors to the
country are astounded by the energy, the viril-
ity, and the intelligence shown by the Cechs in
the last quarter-century. Sidney Whitman*
writes in this connection: " Whoever knows
' The realm of the Hapsburgs. By Sidney Whitman. New
York, n. d.
176 Bohemia and the Cechs
what Bohemia was thirty years ago, and com-
pares the racial conditions then with those of
to-day, must wonder at the changes that have
taken plac^. The Cech has progressed in a
measure that cannot fail to strike the impartial
observer with wonder. Up to the end of the
fifties, most of the towns of Bohemia had a
decided German character. The better classes
almost exclusively spoke German; the schools,
academies, theatres, commerce, and industry —
all these were German. The Cech language
was only spoken by the peasant or the villager,
or, in the case of the towns, by the working
class and domestics. How all this has changed !
In the course of thirty years the Cechs have
created a powerful political party, a literature,
and a musical school of their own. ' '
CHAPTEE IX
GEBMAFS AND JEWS IN BOHEMIA
Foreign elements in the population of Bohemia — Effect of the
destruction of the national language and literature — De-
crease in the proportion of Germans — Failure of the Germans
to get a permanent foothold in the country — Where they are
found — Mixture of Germans and Jews — Common bond of
union the dislike of the Bohemians — Antiquity of the Hebrew
colony in Prague — ■ Josephtown and its historic monuments
— The Jewish quarter of Prague in the sixteenth century —
Naming of the Jews by Maria Theresa — Special privileges
enjoyed by the children of Israel — Why the Jews of Bohemia
are Germans rather than Bohemians.
The Germans constitute about twenty-three
per cent, of the population of Bohemia, al-
though this proportion is growing less each
year. This is not due exclusively to the aug-
mented procreative power of the Bohemians,
as many writers have asserted, but to changed
social and economic conditions. Previous chap-
ters have called attention to the repeated ef-
forts of certain of the Hapsburg rulers to Ger-
manize the country; to the destruction of the
rich national literature during the centuries
when the Jesuits were the spiritual masters of
the kingdom, and to the suppression of the
Bohemian language by Joseph II and his im-
177
178 Bohemia and the Cechs
mediate successors. During these decades the
Cech ceased to be spoken, save by the peasants,
and it was no longer studied in the schools.
The result was that the Bohemians in the cities
forgot their mother-tongue, and the German
became the almost-universal language of the
kingdom.
With the intellectual awakening that fol-
lowed in the train of the great national move-
ment that came to Bohemia the past century,
there was a return to the use of the Cech lan-
guage — slow at first, but tremendously rapid
during the last thirty years. Many Bohemians
were before this time enumerated as Germans,
because that was the only language they knew.
But for two generations the Cech has again
been generally taught in the country, and men
whose parents were formerly enumerated by
the census officials as Germans, are to-day re-
turned as Bohemians. To give a few individual
instances: I have a friend in Prague who
speaks the German, but as a foreigner, and his
son, a lad in his early teens, has not yet taken
up the study of German, although he has made
a beginning in English and French. My
friend's father could not speak the Bohemian
before his marriage, although of pure Slavonic
Germans and Jews in Bohemia 179
ethnic stock. He had been reared in the city
where there was neither opportunity to study
nor to hear the Cech. He married a Bohemian
from one of the villages, who was a patriot,
and she insisted on her spouse learning the
national language; but he always spoke it as
a foreigner. His children acquired the Bohe-
mian as their mother-tongue; and his grand-
children, who will represent the next genera-
tion, if they know German at all, will know
it as a language of the schools. One more in-
stance: The owner of a large industrial plant
in Bohemia, of old Bohemian stock, told me that
his father, who had owned the factory before
him, did not know the Bohemian language ; and
yet his son, a man in early middle-life, admits
that without a knowledge of the Bohemian he
could not operate his plant, because three-
fourths of his employees do not speak the Ger-
man.
These cases, I take it, are fairly typical of
the causes operating to bring about the rapid
alteration of the numerical strength of the two
races. With improved social and economic
conditions, it may be true that the Bohemians
are surpassing the Germans in procreation;
but I do not agree with those writers who main-
180 Bohemia and the Cechs
tain that a large factor in the Bohemian in-
crease is due to the Germans who give up their
language for the Cech. Bohemia, with the re-
naissance* of the past century, is coming into
her own.
How the Germans were brought to Bohemia,
and how all the machinery of a powerful au-
tocracy was placed at their command, has been
told in previous chapters. If they failed to get
a permanent foothold then, they can scarcely
hope to maintain their supremacy now, in the
face of an enlightened people who are out-dis-
tancing them in intelligence, skill, and creative
genius. It requires no prophet to assert that
German dominance in Bohemia is a matter of
past history. One need not mourn its demise;
for in the centuries the Germans were in power
and lorded it over the Bohemians, what con-
tributions, it may be asked, did they make
to literature, science, art, or humanity? Who
is the German-Bohemian educator that one
would mention in the same hour with Komen-
sky, historian with the name of Palacky, com-
poser with the name of Dyot^] or man of let-
ters with Vrchlicky? The German-Bohemians,
with all the odds in their favour, have never
displayed any indications of great talent, and
Germans and Jews in Bohemia 181
one may well wish the Cechs, with their ex-
traordinary virility and unusual promise, god-
speed in their struggles with the acclimated
foreigners withia their borders.
The Germans occupy the outer fringe of the
country — along the Bavarian, Saxon, and
Prussian frontiers, with assemblages in the
cities. But, like the Hebrews, they have never
been spread over wide areas of the kingdom.
By a system of unfair manipulation of the elec-
torate, they have been enabled until quite recent
times to maintain control of the large munici-
palities. At a former period the industries of
the country were largely in their hands, and
they still have large industrial interests in the
toAvns of western and northern Bohemia. They
also shared with the Hebrews the banking ia-
stitutions of the country, and most of the for-
eign and domestic commerce. But as suggested
in a previous chapter, they no longer have a
monopoly of these monetary pursuits.
The Hebrews are found mixed with the Ger-
mans in the larger cities. Indeed, the two
races, antagonistic in Germany and Austria,
form one people in Bohemia. They speak the
same language, patronize the same schools, and
share a common hatred for the Bohemians,
182 Bohemia and the Oechs
The newspapers published at Prague in the
German are, I was told, with one exception,
owned by the Hebrews ; and with this one ex-
ception thfey are anti-Cech. The German and
Hebrew races form one rather compact political
party in the cities ; and, with their wealth and
the support of the imperial government (when
it is in pro-German hands), they still exert an
influence in the kingdom altogether out of pro-
portion to their numerical strength.
The Hebrews number about five per cent, of
the total population of Bohemia. Most of them
came to the country immediately after the de-
struction of Jerusalem, although it is asserted
that there was a Jewish settlement in Prague
before the Christian era, and that, being guilt-
less of participation in the crucifixion, they suf-
fered less from persecution during the mediae-
val period than their co-religionists elsewhere.
Their colony in Prague was from an early
period both large and prosperous. They occu-
pied quarters in the northwestern part of the
city which was known as Josephtown (Jose-
fov). They seem to have been unmolested
down to 1389, when they suffered a great per-
secution. Some of the rulers were on terms of
friendship with them, and Eudolph II (1576-
Germans and Jews in Bohemia 183
1612), in particular, seems to have accorded
them unusual privileges. The Jewish astron-
omer Bezalel, the contemporary and friend of
Tycho Brahe, enjoyed special favours at the
court of Rudolph.
The oldest existing Jewish synagogue in Eu-
rope is in Prague. It is known as the Old-New-
School. It was erected in the early G-othic style
of architecture by the first fugitives from Jeru-
salem after the destruction of that city. It
contains an interesting flag given the Jews by
Ferdinand III for bravery during the siege of
Prague by the Swedes at the time of the Thirty
Tears' War. This was " the highest honour
that could then be conferred on a Jew. ' ' Near
the synagogue is the old Jewish cemetery
(disused since 1787). It contains hundreds of
monuments on which are inscribed not the
names of the deceased, but the emblems of the
tribes of Israel, for the burying ground ante-
dates the naming of the Jews. A water pitcher
marks the resting spot of the members of the
tribe of Levi, two hands that of Aaron, etc.^
By the end of the sixteenth century the Jew-
1 For an interesting account of the existing monuments in
Josephtown in Prague, see: Alterthiimer der Prager Josefstadt,
israelitischer Friedhof, Alt-Neu-Schule, und andere Synagogen
By Benedikt Foges. Prague, 1882.
184 Bohemia and the Oechs
ish quarter of Prague was one of the chief cen-
tres of Israel. F. Marion Crawford, the Amer-
ican novelist, has reconstructed this period in
his romanee, The Witch of Prague. ' ' Throngs
of gowned men, crooked, bearded, filthy, vul-
ture-eyed, crowded upon each other in the nar-
row public place, talking in quick, shrill accents,
gesticulating with hands and arms and heads
and bodies, laughing, chuckling, chattering,
hook-nosed and loose-lipped, grasping fat
purses with lean fingers, shaking greasy curls
that straggled out under caps of greasy fur,
glancing to right and left with quick, gleaming
looks that pierced the gloom like fitful flashes
of lightning, plucking at each other by the
sleeve and pointing long fingers and crooked
nails, two, three, and four at a time, as markers
in their ready reckoning, a writhing mass of
humanity, intoxicated by the smell of gold, mad
for its possession, half hysteric with the fear
of losing it, timid, yet dangerous, poisoned to
the core by the sweet sting of money, terrible
in intelligence, vile in heart, contemptible in
body, irresistible in the unity of their greed —
the Jews of Prague two hundred years ago." ^
* The witch of Prague. By F. Marion Cravrford, New York,
1882.
Germans and Jews in Bohemia 185
It will be recalled that the Hebrews of Eu-
rope were first given surnames in Bohemia,
Austria, and Hungary. Up to the time of
Maria Theresa they had simply been known by
tribal names, as Isaac of the tribe of Levi,
Jacob of the tribe of Aaron, etc., which is stUl
the practice with the Jews in Constantinople.
The charge was made that they evaded their
taxes, and the task of naming them was turned
over to the war department. ' ' And a charming
mess the graceless young lieutenants made of
it." German was the compulsory language of
all the states of the empire at this period, which
accounts for the fact that the Jews of Europe
and America have quite generally German
names. Many of the army officials were corrupt ;
and to such as would pay a reasonable bribe
they gave pretty names like Goldstein (gold-
stone), Edelstein (precious stone), Singvogel
(singing bird), Blumenthal (rosevale), and
Schonberg (beautiful mountain). On the other
hand, those who could afford to pay the lieu-
tenants— but would not — got such hateful
names as Liebschmerzen (bellyache). Unrein
(filthy), and Schwein (hog). But the Hebrews
in Bohemia, as in other countries, are altering
their names. I found one town where, to judge
186 Bohemia and the Cechs
from the names borne by the children of Israel,
one might assume that a Shakespearean renais-
sance had recently struck that part of Bohemia.
The Jewish shopkeepers bore such names as
Eomeo, Juliet, Benvolio, and lago, which can
scarcely date from the time of Maria Theresa.
As already pointed out, the franchise in Bo-
hemia gives the capitalists and the landlords a
large hand in the legislation of the country.
As bankers and capitalists the Jews are given a
leverage which they do not hesitate to use ; and,
controlling most of the German newspapers in
the kingdom, they are able to dictate the policy
of the political party to which they adhere.
The Colquhouns are of the opinion that the
Jews are obtaining a position which menaces
the agricultural and industrial proletariat of
Bohemia, and that the country is " already
over the threshold of one of those periodical
waves of irresistible anti-Semitism which at
various times have almost overwhelmed this
irrepressible race."
While the Hebrews of Bohemia have tried
to pursue an opportunist policy in political mat-
ters, their sympathies have very generally been
with the Germans, and they have been univer-
sally hostile to the national movement. A Bo-
Germans and Jews in Bohemia 187
hemian Jew invariably calls himself an Aus-
trian or a German. This produces an effect
on the Cechs not unlike what might be imagined
in Canada, if certain inhabitants of the province
of Quebec or Ontario should call themselves
Englishmen.
In addition to the fifty thousand Hebrews
in Prague, and considerable numbers in Brno,
Budejovice, and the other big cities, there is a
large transient population of Jews in Carlsbad,
Marienbad, and Teplice during the summer sea-
son to take the " cure " for obesity and stom-
ach troubles. Gaberdined Jews from Galicia,
Poland, Eussia, Germany and other parts of
the world swarm these " appetite cures " by
the thousands during the months of July, Au-
gust, and September.
There are in the city of Prague about eight-
een thousand Germans and fifty thousand He-
brews. Of the ninety members of the municipal
council of the city, eighty-seven are Bohemians
and three are Jews. As already remarked, the
Germans and Hebrews at the capital form a
class quite distinct by themselves. There is lio
interchange of social amenities between the Bo-
hemians and the Germans (and Jews). The
Germans have their own theatres, opera, clubs,
188 Bohemia and the Cechs
cafes, concerts, schools, churches, and univer-
sity which they share with the Hebrews.
Prague no longer has the German aspect which
it bore so late as twenty or thirty years ago.
German names to the streets have entirely dis-
appeared. On my last visit to the capital I
lamented this loss. A Bohemian patriot called
my attention to the fact that twenty per cent,
of the population of the American metropolis
was Hebrew while only four per cent, of the
population of the Bohemian metropolis was
German; and he wanted to know if Yiddish
street signs were displayed in New York. This
was the crux of the matter.
CHAPTER X
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS : THE SOKOLS
Beginnings of the Sokols — Early leaders in the movement —
The first unions — Organizations in the provincial towns
— Opposition of the imperial goverrmient — Part played by
gymnastics in the association — Relation of the Sokols to the
national movement — District organization and supervision
— The jubilee — Intellectual and moral influence of the
Sokols — Historic pilgrimages — International meets — The
tournament of 1907 — Strength of the Sokols — Library
movement in Bohemia — Public libraries at Prague — The
Bohemian Industrial Museum — Vojta NAprstek and his
labours — What he did for libraries — The periodical litera-
ture of Bohemia and its influence — The daily journals of
Prague — ^ Weeklies, monthUes, and quarterlies.
The organization of the Sokols in 1862 has
undoubtedly been the most forceful factor in
the social unification of the Bohemian people.
While founded primarily for the purpose of
gymnastic training, the Sokols have included in
their programme instruction in civics and eth-
ics, and all other matters promising the better-
ment of the nation. The name Sokol means
falcon, a raptorial bird indigenous to the coun-
try. The members of the society wear a special
dress, and in their caps the falcon feathers.
The original founders of the association were
189
190 Bohemia and the Cechs
Dr. Miroslav Tyrs, Dr. Julius Grregr, Professor
Em. Tonner, Dr. Edward Gregr, and Mr. Jin-
dfich Fiigner, the latter being the first presi-
dent.
The organization met a need for association
and mutual interchange of national hopes and
aspirations at a time when the Austrian gov-
ernment looked with suspicion upon public
gatherings of every sort ; but the union of men
for the sole purpose of gymnastic training and
improvement in physical development did not
hint at the possible subsequent social signifi-
cance of the new institution.
The first union was organized in Prague the
16th of February, 1862. A hall was rented, a
gymnastic instructor engaged, and the purposes
of the new organization carried out with
marked enthusiasm. " The intense activity
aroused by the growing national feeling," re-
marks Joseph Scheiner,^ " soon widened the
scope of the association, and the personal ex-
ample and strong influence of Dr. Tyrs and
President Fiigner accentuated the need of edu-
cating an energetic, courageous, and hardened
Bohemian manhood. The patriotic spirit and
' See the article " Sokolslov " by Joseph Scheiner in Ottuv
Slovnfk Nau6n^ (Otto's Encyclopsedia) to which I am indebted
for much of my information on the Sokols.
Social Institutions 191
the worthy example of the members of the
association soon gained the attention and the
good-will of the nation, and the organization
became the centre of numerous noble aspira-
tions, among which the principle of equality
and brotherhood occupied the first place. ' '
The movement spread from Prague to the
other towns of the kingdom and before the end
of the year there were Sokols in Brno, Jaro-
mer, Jicm, Kolm, Kutna Hora, Nova Paka,
Pribram, and Turnov. The next year the union
at the capital acquired a suitable hall, which
enabled it to become a centre of propaganda.
Soon there were organizations not only in Bo-
hemia and Moravia, but also in Gralicia, Cami-
ola, Croatia, and other Slavic provinces. As
early as 1865 an effort was made by the Bohe-
mians to organize a Sokol in St. Louis; and,
although this did not succeed, unions were
shortly formed in several cities in the United
States.
Application was made to the government al
Vienna in 1865 for permission to organize corps
of volunteers for the national defence, and to
occupy and fortify the mountains and narrow-
passes that lead from Bohemia into Prussia
and Saxony. Dr. Tyrs forwarded a detailed
192 Bohemia and the Cechs
statement to the government of the need of
better protection on the German frontiers — as
events the next year abundantly proved — but
the project "met with flat refusal. The Sokols
suffered greatly by the war with Prussia ia
1866 ; and the restrictions subsequently im-
posed upon them materially reduced the num-
ber of local organizations; so that by the end
of 1866 only twenty-one unions remained in
existence.
The movement soon regained however what
it had lost in the way of the persecutions which
followed the war with Prussia, so that by 1871
there were one hundred and thirty organiza-
tions in the country. At this time Dr. Tyrs
completed his Fundamentals of gymnastics
(Zaklady telocviku), which greatly increased
the efficiency of the formal physical instruction.
At the same time he began the publication of
a journal called the Sokol, which emphasized
the correlation of physical and moral training
" for the general improvement of the nation,
to give it strength, valour, and keen defensive
power. "It was also proposed to hold a meet-
ing of all the unions in the country, but this was
promptly prohibited by the government.
The Prague organization became identified
Social Institutions 193
with the national movement in 1868 by partici-
pation in the beginnings of the National Bohe-
mian Theatre, which, like the national museum,
founded a half century before, was a mile-stone
in the advancement of the Bohemian people.
Again in 1874 the Sokols participated in the
erection of a monument at Pfibyslav to the
memory of John 2izka, the great military hero
of the Hussite wars. But the political discords
and the financial difficulties of the next few
years hampered greatly the usefulness of the
Sokols, and caused the dissolution of many local
unions and the suspension of the periodical.
The SoJcol resumed publication in 1881, and the
next year a meeting composed of representa-
tives of all the associations in the country met
at Prague. Seventy unions, with a membership
of one thousand, took part in the exercises and
deliberations of this general assembly. This
greatly strengthened the movement and before
the end of that year one hundred and twenty
unions were in existence.
In 1884 a system of district organization and
supervision was established, and three years
later a permanent national organization of all
the Sokols in Bohemia and Moravia was ef-
fected. Public exhibitions of the gymnastic ex-
194 Bohemia and the Cechs
ercises, the erection of suitable gymnastic halls,
organization of training classes for the leaders,
and frequent conferences greatly strengthened
the movement; and a great gathering of all
the Sokol unions of the world was called at
Prague in 1887. But the hostile attitude of the
government at the eleventh hour made this
festival impossible. Upon the arrival of the
American contingent — under the leadership of
A. Volensky, K. Stulik, and J. Cermak — some
contests and games were arranged for in great
haste at Cesky Brod, near the battlefield of
Lipany, where the Hussite party under the lead-
ership of Prokop the Great suffered a crushing
defeat in 1434.
The attitude of the government strengthened
the movement by arousing the enthusiasm of
the young men and stimulating in them greater
devotion to the cause. In 1889 the national
organization (Ceska Obec Sokolska) was per-
fected and the administration of the unions
in Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia unified.
Careful statistics were thenceforth compiled;
courses for trainers at definite periods pror
vided; the publication of books on gymnastics
begun, and the Sokol movement in a dozen
other ways augmented and intensified.
Social Institutions 195
At the jubilee exposition in honour of the
centenary of the first industrial exposition of
the kingdom of Bohemia at the coronation of
Leopold II, seven thousand Bohemian Sokols,
with two hundred from Poland, and three hun-
dred from the southern Slavonic provinces,
were in attendance; and two thousand three
hundred members took part in the tourna-
ments; and again during the ethnographical
exhibition at Prague in 1895, seven thousand
five hundred Sokols were in attendance and
four thousand three hundred members took
part in the public displays on the plains of
Letna.
Since 1905 the Sokols have been active in
the organization of libraries, public reading
rooms, lecture courses, and historic excursions
in connection with the local unions. These ac-
tivities, added to the wholesome physical train-
ing so long given, emphasized anew the ethical
and intellectual side of the movement which was
contemplated by its early projectors. The as-
sociation has also been useful to its country-
men in those parts of the kingdom where Ger-
mans are in majority, by assisting them in the
maintenance of schools in the mother tongue
and the erection of gymnastic halls for the ex-
196 Bohemia and the Cechs
ercise of the Bohemian youth. The excursions
partake of the nature of historic pilgrimages.
Thus, for example, in 1898, two thousand Sokols
celebrated the hundredth anniversary of the
birth of Frantisek Palacky, the great historian
and statesman, by a pilgrimage to his birth-
place at Hodslavice in Moravia.
Another large meeting for games and con-
ference was held in Prague in 1901, attended
by twelve thousand members, six thousand five
hundred of whom participated in the public
tournaments, in addition to seventeen hundred
boys and five hundred women who took part
in the gymnastic exhibitions and national
games. Several hundred representative Sokols
from Poland, Croatia, Slavonia, Bulgaria, and
Montenegro were in attendance. The gymnas-
tic societies of France and Denmark also sent
delegates to this meeting.
The fifth international gathering of the So-
kols at Prague in 1907 exceeded in interest,
numbers, and the quality of the displays all
previous ' ' meets. ' ' Eight thousand men,
twenty-four hundred women, five hundred
youths between the ages of fourteen and eight-
een, and eighteen hundred boys between the
ages of six and fourteen took part in the dis-
Social Institutions 197
plays on the Letna from the 27th of June to
the 2nd of July, and there were as many as
eighty thousand spectators at individual per-
formances. Delegates in the dress of the So-
kols from other Slavonic countries, as well as
from the United States, were present in large
numbers — 188 from Bulgaria, 500 from Croa-
tia, 209 from Slavonia, 47 from the kingdom of
Servia, 74 Servians from Austria and Hungary,
5 from Montenegro, 339 Bohemian and 7 Slovak
Sokols from the United States, and small depu-
tations from Eussia, Poland, and other Slavic
countries. The performances included, besides
the conventional gymnastic exercises, games,
dances, and contests, certain military manoeu-
vres, which, for the first time, were made a
feature of the international performances ; also
national dances which represented the ancient
costumes of the Bohemians and the Hanaks
and Horaks of Moravia. Moreover, large num-
bers of children and women participated, since
it was one of the purposes of the gathering to
emphasize the educational value of physical
training.
Another notable feature of the meeting of
1907 was the great chess tournament, the chief
feature of which was the simulation of the de-
198 Bohemia and the Cechs
feat of the army of the Emperor Sigismund m
1422 near Kutna Hora by the Hussite forces
under John 2iizika. On the mammoth chess-
board eaSh of the contending parties was rep-
resented by two hundred and ten Sokcls, four
wagons of the kind used in the Hussite wars,
and twelve horses. The historic significance of
the chess tournament, representing, as it did,
the costumes and methods of warfare of the
fifteenth century, was widely recognized as the
unique feature of the " meet." The Eega-
meys^ say of it: " The encampment of the
forces, their wild dances, and their watch-fires
were very picturesque, indeed. The army of
the enemy rushed upon the field amid loud
shouts and excited jostlings, and the two forces
began placing themselves opposite each other
on the large white and black squares of a gi-
gantic chess-board which had been marked out
on the ground of the athletic field. The idea
of this chess-game battle with living persons,
or rather groups of persons for ' men ' and
wagons for * castles,' was both novel and inter-
esting."
In addition to the athletic and social features
' For a graphic account of the tournament see: Nos Frfires de
Bohgme. By Jeanne and Fr6d6ric R^gamey. Paris, 1908.
DK. KAEEL GHOS.
Social Institutions 199
of the meeting of 1908, there were notable hi,s-
torical addresses by Dr. Joseph Scheiner, the
president of the international organization, and
Dr. Karel Gros, the lord mayor of Prague, and
excursions to near-by historic places; for, as
already hinted, patriotism and a just pride
in Bohemia's honourable past are cardinal
features of the working programme of the So-
kols. >
It may be added that there are six hundred
and ninety Sokol unions in thirty-seven differ-
ent countries, with a membership of thirteen
thousand six hundred and twenty men and
seven thousand seven hundred and twenty
women, besides seven thousand seven hundred
and thirty youths between the ages of fourteen
and eighteen years and about the same number
of boys between the ages of six and fourteen,
and three thousand three hundred and seventy
girls, and all receiving gymnastic training and
enjoying the other social influences which the
Sokols so abundantly exert. More than three
thousand five hundred trainers are regularly
employed, and a large number of lecturers.
More than a hundred of the unions in Bohemia
own their buildings; and, it not infrequently
happens that the finest public buildings in the
200 Bohemia and the Cechs
provincial towns — as at Tumov and Jicin —
are the halls of the Sokols.
The public library movement is less well es-
tablished m Bohemia than might be expected
in a country where education is so highly es-
teemed, and where all classes of the people are
so keenly alive to the need of intellectual im-
provement and the value of knowledge. In
Prague there are reasonable library facilities,
but in the provincial towns, and even more so
in the villages, the dearth of free circulating
libraries is conspicuous. The Sokols have in
recent times bettered matters a bit, but the
Bohemian patriots could study with profit the
free town and village library system of Massa-
chusetts and the travelling library system of
New York.
At Prague there are a number of large libra-
ries. The university has a collection of nearly
four hundred thousand volumes and the library
of the Bohemian National Museum about three
hundred thousand volumes. Both are, however,
for the use of students and scholars. The city
library of Prague, with its five branches, has
about sixty-five thousand volumes, and three
hundred newspapers and journals. But its
hours are short and it does not seem to do much
VOJTA. NAPKSTEK.
Social Institutions 201
to take the books to the people. The number
of its readers is less large than one would find
in an Americsyi city a third its size; and this
seems due, not to the difference in the reading
habits of the two races, but to the lack of pro-
gressive library methods.
The Bohemian Industrial Museum in Prague,
a semi-private institution of special interest to
Americans, meets the library needs of a con-
siderable number of people. The museum is
the foundation of Vojta Naprstek (1826-1894),
a Bohemian patriot who spent ten years in
exile in the United States, and while here be-
came deeply impressed with American institu-
tions. These he attempted to transplant to his
own country. At an early age he became im-
bued with the sentiments of the nationalists,
and while a student at the university of Vienna
his patriotism was so outspoken that he was
forced to flee to America at the outbreak of the
revolution of 1848 to avoid imprisonment as a
political offender. He made his way to a sea-
port and embarked on a sailing vessel with
little more money than was necessary to pay
his passage. Landed in New York, he la-
botired as a stonemason and a joiner (although
he was being educated for the law), first
202 Bohemia and the Cechs
in New York and later at New London, Con-
necticut.
When it was finally possible for his family to
send him pecuniary aid, he went to Milwaukee,
where he started in business as a bookseller and
stationer. Here he became identified with a col-
ony of his countrymen, and with the coopera-
tion of the men of culture of his race the first
Bohemian newspaper in the United States was
founded. He was active in literary and polit-
ical matters in this country ; took the platform
for Fremont in 1856; acted as a government
agent among the Dakota (Sioux) Indians of
the Northwest; visited such cities as Chicago,
St. Louis, New Orleans, Washington, and
Springfield, Mass., for the express purpose of
studying the schools, libraries, and benevolent
institutions, and in other ways familiarized
himself with the nature of democratic institu-
tions in the United States.
The events of 1858 made it possible for him
to return to his native country. Although
placed under police supervision for a time, the
defeat of the Austrians in Italy in 1859, and
the consequent dawn of more liberal notions in
the Hapsburg empire, gave him full liberty and
permitted him " to give practical shape to his
Social Institutions 203
ideas and to enter upon the development of his
great schemes of enlightenment and ameliora-
tion. ' ' ^ His home became the meeting place
of the scientific and literary men of Bohemia,
as well as the distinguished foreigners who vis-
ited Prague. His hospitality to visiting Amer-
icans, which was unfailing, gave him the title
of " unofficial American consul," and made
very real the inscription over the entrance
to his palatial city residence, " Cosrdce poji,
more nerozdvojf " (What the heart unites, the
sea never divides).
" Naprstek's personality was so fascinat-
ing," remarks Dr. Jindfich Maly, " all his aims
were so altruistic, that everybody was speedily
captivated and enlisted in his beneficent serv-
ice." While visiting the international exposi-
tion at London in 1862, the South Kensington
suggested to him the formation of an industrial
museum in Prague. Upon his return to Bo-
hemia he secured the cooperation of Dr. An-
tonin Fric in an exhibition of books, drawings,
school apparatus, modern household appli-
ances, such as sewing machines, etc. He also
organized courses of lectures on popular top-
'Vojta Ndprstek: a Memoir. By JindKch Mai*. Prague,
1906.
204 Bohemia and the Cechs
ics, having been keenly impressed while in
America with the educational value of public
lectures. He was also imbued with the value of
travel and the cultivation of the historic sense
through visits to notable places in the kingdom.
He opened a reading room in his own home
and placed the free use of his library of twenty
thousand volumes at the disposal of his coim-
trymen. He organized concerts ; school excur-
sions to picturesque parts of Bohemia; estab-
lished a fund to be used for the care of the
orphans of the war of 1866, and was active in
the improvement of the economic and intellec-
tual condition of women.
Coming into the inheritance of the family
patrimony in 1873, Mr. Naprstek founded the
Bohemian Industrial Museum in the Bethlehem
Place (Betlemske namesti) in Prague, where
five centuries earlier stood the famous Bethle-
hem chapel in which Master John Hus inau-
gurated the moral revolution of the fifteenth
century. The museum contains collections of
raw material and manufactured articles which
illustrate the various steps in different arts
and crafts, as well as the machines and appli-
ances used in the same ; the industrial products
of Bohemia and foreign countries ; an extended
Social Institutions 205
ethnographic collection, illustrating the cos-
tumes and ethnic types of most of the coun-
tries of the world ; a collection of eighteen thou-
sand drawings and photographs, and a library
of fifty thousand volumes. The library is espe-
cially strong in works on the emancipation of
women, geography and ethnography of the
United States, England, China, and Japan.
The ethnographic collections were for the
most part made by distinguished Bohemian
travellers — that of South Africa by Dr. Holub ;
Abyssinia and North Africa, Dr. Stecker; the
Dutch Sunda colonies, Drs. Paul Durdik and
F. Curda; Babylonia, Professor Wiinsch;
South America, B. Eoezl; India, Professor
Feistmantel, and various Oriental countries,
Josef Kofensky and Anton Hiibsch. It should
also be noted that the first woman's club in
Bohemia was organized in connection with the
intellectual movement radiating from the Na-
prstek in 1865. Besides the museum and li-
brary, there are classes in the arts and crafts,
numerous lecture courses, and other popular
educational activities for the benefit of the
youth of Prague and vicinity.
The Bohemians have an extended periodical
literature and all classes of society follow the
206 Bohemia and the Cechs
current events of the nation with keen interest.
There are fifty daily newspapers in the king-
dom, hundreds of weeklies, and several hundred
monthly aild quarterly publications. But the
periodical literature is a development of the
past half century. Press censorship before
1848 made newspaper publication impossible in
Bohemia. Karel Havlicek is the father of mod-
ern Bohemian journalism; and although he
suffered severe persecution and imprisonment
during his brief career, he gave the tone and
the character to the periodical literature of the
kingdom. For ten years following the death
of Havlicek the government made impossible
the existence of a fearless and independent
press.
Matters improved a bit during the seventies,
and during the last thirty years journalism has
practically emancipated itself from the over-
sight of meddlesome and stupid censors.
Nearly eight hundred periodicals are to-day
published in the Bohemian language, more than
five hundred of this number being in Bohemia,
one hundred and twenty-eight in Moravia,
eighteen in Silesia, seventy in the United
States, and the balance in Slavonia, Austria,
and Germany.
HAVLICEK MONUMENT AT JIOlN.
Social Institutions 207
The leading papers are published at Prague.
Of the great dailies may be mentioned the Nd-
rodni Listy (National Journal), which is the
organ of the Young Cech party; the Ndrodni
Politika (National Politics), professedly inde-
pendent, but with leanings toward the Old Cech
party and with a circulation of two hundred
thousand copies a day; Prdvo Lidu (Human
Eights), the exponent of the Bohemian social
democrats; the Cas (Times), which repre-
sents the realistic party and academic circles;
the Venkov (Country Life), the organ of the
agrarian party; the Hlas Ndroda (National
Voice) and the Politik (Politics), popular dai-
lies that have both morning and afternoon edi-
tions; the €ech (Bohemian), a clerical organ,
the Prazsky Kuryr (Prague Courier), an illus-
trated Old Cech paper, and the Ceske Slovo
(Bohemian Word), a national socialist paper,
complete the list of the dailies published at the
capital.
The Samostatnost (Independent) is a tri-
weekly which is the organ of the radical na-
tional party. Among popular weeklies may be
named the Ndrodni Ohzor (National Outlook),
which is independent, the Zdf (Light), which
is popular with the working classes, and the
208 Bohemia and the Cechs
Nova Doha (New World), which, represents the
social democrats.
Among other standard reviews — weekly,
monthly, and quarterly — are Nase Doha (Our
Times), a realistic review of high merit, Osveta
(Culture), a conservative publication, Slovan-
sky Pfehled (Slavonic Eeview), a pan-Slavonic
organ, CesJcd Revue (Bohemian Eeview), a
Young Cech journal, Pokrokovd Revue (Pro-
gressive Eeview), an organ of the radical na-
tional party, Prazskd Lidovd Revue (Prague
Folks Eeview), a popular literary publica-
tion, and the Moderni Revue (Modern Ee-
view), which takes high rank as a purely lit-
erary review.
As already mentioned, the illustrated papers
of Bohemia are of exceptional merit. Some
of these are the Zlatd Praha (Prague the
Golden), Ceshy 8vet (Bohemian World), Kvety
(Blossoms), Humoristicke Listy (Humorous
Journal), and Nave Illustrovane Listy (New
Illustrated News). This by no means exhausts
the list, but it gives a fairly representative
notion of the better Bohemian publications.
Besides these there are many high grade
monthlies and quarterlies devoted to music, art,
science, and education. The Germans also have
Social Institutions 209
numerous journals which, are mainly in the
hands of the Hebrews and which, for the most
part, are subsidized by the government. Such
publications, as a rule, are distinctly hostile to
the Cech movement for industrial, intellectual,
and political emancipation. The Union is a
conspicuous exception. And the same may be
said of the Cechische Revue, an able literary
and political monthly published in the German,
which is under the editorial management of
Professor Ernst Kraus. It should also be
stated that the Cech papers get no government
subsidies, but rely entirely upon the Bohemian
people for their support. The provincial towns
depend almost entirely upon Prague for their
journals.
CHAPTEE XI
BELIGIOIT, SAINTS, AND MABTYES
Nature of the paganism of the earliest inhabitants of Bohemia
— Gods and goddesses — Ethics of the early religion — In-
troduction of Christianity by Greek missionaries from Con-
stantinople — Its adoption m Moravia — Earliest Christian
churches — Conflicts with the Christians in Germany —
The use of the Slavonic liturgy and its approval by the early
popes — Efforts of Pope Gregory VII to secure the adoption
of the Latin liturgy — Spread of Christianity by Bofivoi I
and Ludmila — Canonization of Ludmila — Saint Vdclav
— John of Nepomuk — His legend as related by the Jesuits —
Not an historic character the verdict of modern historians —
The martyrdom of Master John Hus — His zeal for church
reform — His service to the national language and litera^
ture — Jerome of Prague and his martyrdom — The Roman
CathoUc church in Bohemia — Relation of the church to
the state — Ecclesiastical divisions of the kingdom — Protes-
tants and Hebrews.
It is not known how early the Slavic tribes,
that were the forebears of the Bohemians of
to-day, came to the lands which they now oc-
cupy. Older historians concluded that it must
have been about the middle of the fifth century
of our era; but more recent archaeological in-
vestigations suggest that they arrived much
earlier — probably before the beginning of the
Christian era.
210
Religion, Saints, and Martjrrs 211
The forms of paganism which formed the
ground-work of the earliest religion did not
differ in their essential particulars from the
other countries of central Europe. Perun, the
thunderer, was the god of gods; and around
him were grouped a large number of lesser
deities, such as Radhost, the god of industry;
Stfiboh, the god of winds; Veles, the god of
cattle-breeding; Svatovit, the god of war;
Lada, the goddess of love; 2iva, the goddess
of grain; Devana, the goddess of the forest;
Vesna, the goddess of youth, and Morana, the
goddess of death.
The forces of nature and the affections of
the human heart were represented as nymphs
and demons. The nymphs Eusalky inhabited
springs and Poludnice lived in trees. The lin-
den tree was sacred to the gods. Each family
had its own household idols, as the worship was
not restricted to temples. Throughout the coun-
try were numerous sacred hills, springs, and
streams, and in the twilight hour devout Bohe-
mians brought their offerings to these hallowed
spots and sang hymns of praise. The pagan
Bohemians seem to have believed in the immor-
tality of the soul and in retribution after death.
Adam of Bremen, a mediaeval chronicler, tells
212 Boheijtiia and the Cechs
us that before tlie introduction of Cliristianity
Germans and other Christian traders were not
allowed to proselytize among them. Although
they were pagans, he observes, " there was no-
where to be found more courtesy of manner nor
a more benignant hospitality."
When the Christian religion came to Bohemia
it came not from Eome but from Constanti-
nople. Various efforts had been made by the
Germaus during the ninth century to introduce
it into Bohemia, but even at this early period
racial antipathies between the two peoples were
sufficiently pronounced to frustrate the labours
of the early Teutonic missionaries.
Moravia had acquired political autonomy
earlier than Bohemia, and Svatopluk, during
the latter part of the ninth century, founded
a mighty Slavonic empire which included not
only the present margravate of Moravia but
also the northern part of Bohemia, most of
Poland and Silesia, and the northern part of
Germany. Through intercourse with the Greek
empire he had come in contact with the Chris-
tian religion and had secured the services of two
Greek priests who had laboured among Slavic
tribes m Macedonia, and who not only knew
the language but had translated the Bible into
CATHEDRA!, AT OLOMOUO.
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 213
the Slavonic. These missionaries were Cyril
and Methodus, who played important roles in
the religious and the literary history of Mo-
ravia and Bohemia, for not only did the Slavic
language thereafter become a written one, but
" by its use in religious services it took its posi-
tion with Latin and Greek as a liturgic lan-
guage."
Churches were erected at Brno and Olomouo
and a school was established at Vitvar; and
by the introduction of Christianity into the
country in the Greek form these apostles un-
consciously laid the foimdation for religious
and national opposition to Germany and Rome
which caused centuries of bitter strife and war-
fare, and in the end terminated the indepen-
dence of both the kingdom of Bohemia and the
margravate of Moravia. The object of the mis-
sionaries, we are told, was to teach, to encour-
age intelligence, and not to introduce mere cere-
monies. But the apostles soon came in conflict
with the German priests ; offence was taken at
the use of the Slavic liturgy; the archbishop
of Salzburg claimed that they had invaded his
territory; it was said that th^^y had discarded
the controverted words " and from the Son "
from the creed; they were denounced at the
214 Bohemia and the Cechs
Roman see, and charges of heresy were pre-
ferred against them.
Svatopluk addressed a letter of protest
against the charges of the Germans to Pope
John VIII. This, and a personal visit of the
apostles to Eome, convinced the pontiff that
Cyril and Methodus were worthy men. In his
reply to Svatopluk he writes: " We justly
praise the Slavonic characters introduced by
Cyril the philosopher, in which they chant the
praises due to God; and we order that the
preaching of the word of Christ our God be
proclairaed in the same language ; since we are
admonished to praise God not only in three but
in all tongues by the sacred authority which
commands, saying. Praise God, all ye nations
and laud him all ye peoples ; and the Apostles
filled with the Holy Spirit spake in all tongues
the wonderful words of God; hence the heav-
enly trumpet of Paul also resounds, admonish-
ing ' Let every tongue confess that our Lord
Jesus Christ is ia the glory of God the Father,'
of which matters also he sufficiently and plainly
admonishes us in the first epistle of the Corin-
thians, that, speaking with tongues, we may
build the church of God. Nor is there anything
opposed to sound faith or doctrine in the sing-
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 215
ing of the mass in the same Slavonic tongue,
or in reading the holy gospel, or in the divine
selections of the Old and New Testament well
translated and explained; or to sing all the
other offices of the hours, since he who made
three principal languages, to wit, Hebrew,
Greek, and Latin, himself created all the others
to his praise and glory."
If subsequent occupants of the chair of St.
Peter had taken this viewpoint how much blood-
shed might have been spared in Bohemia and
Europe ! Pope Gregory VII, in a letter to King
Vratislav II at a later date, used very different
arguments. " The use of the vernacular," he
wrote, ' ' was conceded only on account of tem-
porary circumstances, which have passed away.
As to the use of the vernacular edition of the
Scripture, that is impossible. It is not the will
of God that the Sacred Word should be every-
where displayed, lest it should be held in con-
tempt and give rise to error. ' ' After the death
of Cyril and Methodus the Slavonic liturgy was
condemned, although it was continued in Bo-
hemia for many years and was revived during
the period of the Hussite wars. Indeed, it may
be questioned whether the use of the national
liturgy entirely ceased until the end of Bohe-
216 Bohemia and the Clechs
mian independence in 1620. The popular at-
tachment of the people to their national lan-
guage in the face of the pronouncements of
conclave, curia, and rescript has given the Bo-
hemians a reputation for stubbornness that has
become classic.
The Christian religion was introduced in Bo-
hemia from Moravia during the reign of Prince
Bofivoj I. His wife Ludmila was especially
active in the spread of the new faith; and,
through their united efforts the religion made
rapid headway in the country. The church at
Levy Hradec, near Prague, although greatly
altered during the fifteenth century, dates from
the time of Bofivoj and Ludmila. After the
death of her husband, Ludmila was strangled
by her daughter-in-law Drahomira while en-
gaged in her devotions in a church at Tetm.
She was subsequently canonized as a saint in
the Eoman church, and Dvorak, the great Bo-
hemian composer, has made her the subject of
one of his operas. Her relics are preserved in
the church of St. George, at Prague, which she
is said to have founded, and one of her arms
is preserved in the cathedral. Her relics are
venerated the 16th of September.
Vaclav I (928-936), a son of Ludmila, who
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 217
succeeded the wicked Drahomira in her regency,
got the reputation for great piety by spending
most of the night ia prayer and from * ' the habit
of himself cuttiag off the wheat and grapes that
the priests required to prepare the holy wafers
and the wine for the sacrament." He built the
church of St. Vitus, the present cathedral, as
a receptacle for the arm of that saint which
Henry I of Germany had sent him as a gift.
But his great generosity to churches caused
discontent among the nobles, and he was mur-
dered at Stara Boleslav by his treacherous
brother Boleslav while on his way to mass.
He was canonized by the Roman church and
the anniversary of his murder — the 28th of
September — is one of the great religious fes-
tivals of Bohemia. His relics are preserved in
the cathedral at Prague, which he is reputed to
have founded. This tribute is paid him in one
of the standard lives of the saints: " Grod sent
many graces down on him, so that he under-
stood Latin books as if he were a bishop, and
he also read Slavonic with ease. And not only
was he skilled in reading, but he also fulfilled
the works of mercy, in that he fed and clad the
poor, protected the widows and children, and
purchased the freedom of helpless prisoners,
218 Bohemia and the 6echs
especially priests, and set theon at liberty. He
showed hospitality to strangers, and was full
of tenderness to all, great and humble, and
cared for the welfare of all."
The saint, whose earthly existence has been
the subject of most bitter controversy in recent
years, is John of Nepomuk, who was canonized
in 1729 upon the recommendation of the Jesuits,
then the spiritual masters of Bohemia. The
canonization was based upon the following le-
gend: During the closing years of his reign
King Vaclav IV (1378-1419) led a very dis-
solute life and gave himself up to gambling,
dancing, and association with immoral people.
His wife, who was a noble Christian woman,
repeatedly reprimanded her royal spouse for
his unseemly behaviour; and, conceiving a
great dislike for her, the king sought an excuse
for taking her life. He accordingly summoned
before him John of Nepomuk, a canon of
Prague and master of the university, who was
the queen's confessor, and required him to re-
late the sins that the queen had confessed to
him before God. But the priest protested that
it was not beseeming for the king to make such
inquiries ; and refusing to yield to the demands
of Vaclav he was thrust into a grievous dun-
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 219
geon. Having several times been brought into
the presence of the king, and each time insisting
that he had not retained the queen's sins in his
memory, the executioner was ordered to fetter
him and thrust him into the Vltava. After this
was done the inhabitants of Prague observed
many lights over the body as it floated in the
stream. The king on hearing of this miracle
left immediately for his castle at 2ebrak, and
the prelates of the cathedral took the body
out of the water and carried it solemnly to
Hradcany, the citadel of Prague, where they
buried it in St. Vitus' cathedral. Afterwards
many and manifold wonders took place there,
and many declared that John of Nepomuk was
one of God's martyrs and saints. His canoni-
zation, however, did not seem to have occurred
to them. That was reserved for the Jesuits
more than three hundred years later.
With the defeat of the nationalists at White
Mountain, Ferdinand II was determined to ex-
tirpate Protestantism in Bohemia and for this
purpose he called to his aid the followers of
Loyola, who had been his teachers and for
whom he had formed great affection. He
sought the aid of the Jesuits in what he re-
garded as a truly holy cause; and their coop-
220 Bohemia and the Cechs
eration with tlie militant king soon removed
the taint of heresy from the kingdom. An ar-
ticle on Bohemia in the New Catholic Encyclo-
pcBdria tells tis how these desirable results were
obtained: " The nobility were punished for
their treason, either by execution or banish-
ment, with confiscation of property; the rebel-
lious cities lost their freedom; the common
people either emigrated or returned to the
Catholic faith." Count Liitzow, a Bohemian,
states the accomplishment of the same end in
somewhat different language. He says : ' ' Con-
fiscation of land took place on an enormous
scale, and foreign nobles — mainly generals in
the imperial army — obtained the estates of the
ancient Protestant nobility of Bohemia. The
inhabitants of the towns, many of which had
been strongholds of the national church, were
driven into exile ; and immigrants, generally of
German birth, took their place. As regards the
peasantry, whom the system of serfdom at-
tached to the soil — for the cultivation of which
they were required — sinister arguments such
as the pillory, the whipping post, and the gal-
lows gradually induced to conform to the church
of Rome."
Palacky was the first Bohemian historian to
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 221
reach the conclusion that John of Nepomnk be-
longed solely to legend and in no wise to na-
tional history. Most writers who have since
investigated the matter, including those whose
viewpoint is that of the Eoman Catholic church,
have taken much the same stand. The fact that
John Hus continued to be venerated long after
the people of Bohemia had been forced back
into the Catholic church, may have led the Jesu-
its, as historians assert, to hope that they might
substitute this veneration for another Master
John who should be untainted with heresy.
Hence, they argue, the manufacture of. the le-
gend and the canonization of Saint John of
Nepomuk. An exhaustive literature on the
subject, to which reference is made in a foot-
note,* may be consulted by those interested in
the matter. His feast is celebrated on the tenth
of May, and his tongue, enclosed in a silver case
at Prague, is as fresh as when cut from his
head and continues to bleed. His body is pre-
served in a silver sarcophagus that weighs four
* For the controversial literature of Saint John of Nepomuk
see, besides the history of Bohemia (in^Cech and German) by
Palack^ and the history of Prague (in Ceoh) by Tomek, Abel's
Die Legende vom Heiligen Johann von Nepomuk: eine geschicht-
liche Abhandlune (Berlin, 1855), Herben's Jan Nepomuck*-
spor dSjin iSesk^ch s cfrkvi fimskou (Prague, 1893), and Wratis-
law's How Saints are made at Rome (London, 1866).
222 Bohemia and the Cechs
hundred pounds. It was hidden when Napo-
leon * ' visited ' ' Prague and carried away some
of the richest treasures of the cathedral. Oth-
erwise the 'precious relic would have disap-
peared.
To give an account of all the martyrs of Bo-
hemia would be an attempt to rival John Fox
of literary memory. Neither can much space
be given to the execution of the Protestant no-
bles at the close of the Thirty Years' War, " the
extinction of the lamp of Bohemian learning,"
as one Cech writer puts it. That they met death
in the manner of martyrs is a fact that is famil-
iar to all students of history. " Never even
for a moment," says the History of the perse-
cution^ ' ' did they lose their presence of mind ;
and so fervent were the words which they
spoke, that the very judges and soldiers fre-
quently shed tears." One of the noblemen is
reported to have shouted from the scaffold,
" Divide my body into a thousand parts, and
search through my bowels, and you will find
nothing except what is written in our Apolo-
gies. The love of liberty and of our faith put
the sword into our hands. God has given the
1 Historia Perseoutionum Bohemicae. Attributed to John
Amos Komensk^. Amsterdam, 1648.
Religion, Saints, and Mart3n:'s 223
victory to the emperor. We are in your power.
The will of the Lord be done. ' '
Master John Hus (1369-1415), to whom ref-
erence has already frequently been made, is the
greatest of the Bohemian martyrs. He was
burned at the stake because he refused to re-
cant his doctrines before the council of Con-
stance. He had been a great teacher and a
great preacher, as well as one of the first pa-
triots and men of letters ia his country; and
his services to literature, no less than church
reform, is generally recognized by writers of
all shades of religious belief.
The main charges for which Hus suffered
martyrdom — the immorality of the clergy —
were made by dozens of the members of
the oecumenical council that condemned him.
" The proof of the disorder of the clergy is
not in the invectives of their enemies," writes
fimile de Bonnechose, " but in the writings of
the most illustrious of their own order — of
those who, from their character and situation,
had every interest to see their church pure and
uncontaminated. It is not to the poets and
chroniclers alone, that we owe the picture of
its corruption. Prelates, cardinals, and doc-
tors, as celebrated as they were respectable.
224 Bohemia and the Cechs
laid open with unshriaking hand the vices
which were preying upon it, as a skilful physi-
cian unhesitatingly probes the wounds he wants
to cure. Th*e treatise of Clemangis, that faith-
ful French son of the Roman church, is a mpre
hideous picture of the excessive ignorance and
degradation into which the clergy had fallen
than any denunciation that ever fell from the
lips of John Hus or Jerome of Prague. And
the words of Clemangis were never contra-
dicted by his contemporaries. ' '
A recent writer in the New Catholic Encyclo-
pcBdia s,iaies the causes of the Hussite move-
ment in more moderate but not dissimilar terms.
" The causes of this religious-national move-
ment," he says, " were the excessive numbers
and wealth of the clergy, their moral decay,
and, in addition, the national reaction against
the disproportionate power of the Germans,
and the weakening of the secular government. ' '
Concerning the theological doctrines of Hus,
Count Liitzow very properly says : ' ' Hus used
scholastic dialectics as a skilful fencer uses his
sword, to parry the attacks of an implacable
enemy. His heart was elsewhere, and this his
enemies well knew. An opulent and immoral
clergy and a vicious and ambitious emperor
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 225
were equally determined to bring to the stake
the humble priest who had dared to praise pov-
erty, virtue, and self-sacrifice."
The patriotism of Hus, which was very real,
and his large service to the cause of the na-
tional language have been too often overlooked
by his biographers. Count Liitzow's recent
noteworthy volume, which emphasizes this
phase of the life of Hus, should in consequence
be welcomed by the English-reading public. He
remarks : ' ' How fully Hus felt with his coun-
trymen is proved by the fact that so pious and
kind-hearted a man did not hesitate, following
the example of the Hebrew prophet, to place
the marrying of a foreign wife on the same
level as the most heinous sins. How little the
popular feeling among Bohemians has changed
in the period of nearly five centuries that divide
us from the time of Hus is proved by the fact
that almost all political interest in Bohemia
in the present day centres in the question of
language, the Sprachenfrage, as the Germans
call it. Hus's endeavours to strengthen and
develop his native language were, however, by
no means limited to the purely negative task
of opposing the encroachments of the German
tongue. He well knew that his own language.
226 Bohemia and the Cechs
to become exclusively the language of the state
and of the scholars of Bohemia, required devel-
opment and improvement in many respects.
Even as re^rds such elementary matters as
orthography great disorder prevailed ; no gen-
erally accepted rules existed. In the scanty
written documents and in the language of the
people there still remained many traces of the
different dialects from which the Bohemian
language originally sprung. Hus first at-
tempted to establish a universally recognized
written language for the whole extensive dis-
trict— including Moravia and Silesia as well
as Bohemia proper — in which the Bohemian
language is spoken. He first attempted a task
which the revivers of the Bohemian tongue in
the nineteenth century were finally and defi-
nitely successful. These men were indeed
greatly indebted to Hus, as well as later to the
writers of the Bohemian brotherhood."^
Jerome of Prague (1365-1416), also con-
demned by the council of Constance and burned
at the stake, played no such part in the history
of Bohemia as his fellow-martyr Master John
Hus. He was a great traveller, and spent so
* The life and times of Master John Hus. By Count Liltzow.
London and New York, 1909.
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 227
much, of his time in foreign countries that his
part in the moral revolution was not conse-
quential. He was a man of great classical
learning and this fact appealed rather strongly
to the sympathies of humanistic scholars. He
was a brilliant speaker and " on one occa-
sion when both he and Hus took part in
one of the many disputations then customary
at the university of Prague, Jerome's speech
quite outbalanced that of the greater man, and
the enthusiastic young students conducted him
home in triumph." Shortly after Hus's mar-
tyrdom, Jerome recanted the so-called heresies
of which he had been accused, but he soon re-
gretted his recantation and declared that he
still held to the opinions " of those holy men,
John Wycliffe and John Hus," and he was
burned at the stake as Hus had been. Poggio
Bracciolini, the papal legate at the council of
Constance, and no friend of the church reforms
which Jerome had advocated, wrote of the with-
drawal of his recantation: " I must confess
that I never saw one who in the eloquence of
his defence came as near to the eloquence of
the ancients, whom we admire so much. His
voice was sweet, clear and resounding. The
dignity of the orator's jests now expressed in-
228 Bohemia and the Cechs
dignation, now moved to compassion, wMck,
however, he neither claimed nor wished to ob-
tain. He stood before his judges undaunted
and intrepid. Not only not fearing, but even
seeking death, he appeared as another Cato.
He was indeed a man worthy of eternal memory
in men's minds. With joyful brow, cheerful
countenance, and elated face he went to his
doom. He feared not the flames, not the tor-
ments, not death. None of the Stoics ever suf-
fered death with so constant and brave a mind,
and he indeed seemed to desire it. When he
had reached the spot where he was to die, he
divested himself of his garments, and knelt
down in prayer. Logs of wood were then piled
about his body, which they covered up to the
breast. When they were lighted, he began to
sing a hymn, which was interrupted by the
smoke and the flames. This, however, is the
greatest proof of the constancy of his mind,
that when the official wished to light the stake
behind his back, that he might not see it, he
said, ' Come here and light the stake before my
eyes, for if I had feared it I should never have
come to this spot, as it was in my power to fly.'
Thus perished a man eminent beyond belief.
I saw his end, I contemplated every one of his
PEASANT COUPLE.
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 229
acts. Be it that he acted thus from faithless-
ness or from obstinacy, you could perceive that
it was a man of the philosophic school who had
perished. Mutus did not allow his hand to be
burnt with more brave a mind than this man
his whole body. Socrates did not drink the
poison as willingly as this man submitted him-
self to the flames."
Of the six million three hundred and eighteen
thousand inhabitants of Bohemia, according to
the census of 1900, nine-tenths profess the re-
ligion of the Eoman Catholic church ; although,
as remarked earlier in this work, it may well
be doubted if the Bohemians of to-day are
a profoundly religious people. The fact that,
of the thousands who come to America each
year, two-thirds at once leave the church, and
many engage actively in the propagandism of
infidelity, is the basis of this doubt. The Col-
quhouns ^ imply that only the highest and the
lowest classes in Bohemia are still Eoman Cath-
olics; but I found the great majority of the
middle classes likewise conforming to the cere-
monies of the church with apparent sincer-
ity, even though recent political events point
•The whirlpool of Europe. By Archibald R. and Ethel
Colquhoun. New York. 1907.
230 Bohemia and the Cechs
to developments wholly unfavorable to tlie
clergy.
As suggested in earlier chapters, the Eoman
Catholic church had an absolute monopoly of
religion in Bohemia from 1620 to 1780. The
edict of toleration which Joseph II issued at
the beginning of his reign altered matters.
This edict guaranteed religious freedom to the
Lutherans and the Calvinists, although not to
the Bohemian Brethren (in America called the
Moravian Brethren). The state does not in-
terfere in the matters of faith, ritual, and ec-
clesiastical discipline, but it requires of the
religious orders — as of all other associations
— obedience to state laws ia their " outward
legal relations. ' ' This does not, however, inter-
fere with the number and prosperity of the
orders; and the persecution and confiscation
of property, which other Roman Catholic coun-
tries of Europe have inflicted in recent times
on religious orders, are unknown in Bohemia.
Churches, public chapels, and cemeteries are
exempt from the income tax, the ground tax,
and the dwelling tax; theological students in
both times of peace and war are not required
to perform military service, and priests are
exempt from paying local and direct taxes,
Religion, Saints, and Martyrs 231
although they are permitted to enjoy the priv-
ileges of the electorate. The salaries of the
priests of Prague are fixed at $480 a year; iu
the suburhs, and in towns of more than five
thousand inhabitants, $360; in other places,
$320 and $280. Assistant priests get from $160
to $140 a year.
Ecclesiastically Bohemia is divided into the
archdiocese of Prague, which includes the west-
ern and the central parts of the kingdom; the
diocese of Budejovice (Budweis), which in-
cludes the southern part of the country; the
diocese of Kralove Hradec (Koniggratz), the
eastern part, and the diocese of Litomefice
(Leitmeritz), the northern part. Besides the
regular pastoral work, the church has numerous
theological seminaries, elementary, secondary,
and normal school, hospitals, insane asylums,
and homes for orphans. Most of the educa-
tional and philanthropic institutions are admin-
istered by the religious orders, such as the
Jesuits, Cistercians, Benedictines, and Premon-
stratensians.
The Hebrews, who are found only in the cit-
ies, have their own religious organizations.
The Protestants also have separate organiza-
tions. But both include less than ten per cent.
232 Bohemia and the Cechs
of the population of the kingdom. The Prot-
estant mission work of Bohemia among the
Eoman Catholics is undertaken by the Ameri-
can Board of "Commissioners for Foreign Mis-
sions, and that among the Jews by the United
Free church of Scotland. Among the Grermans
the Lutherans have a small following. But
the Protestant movement in Bohemia has not
made great headway in recent times.
CHAPTER XII
EDUCATION IN BOHEMIA
Education in relation to the national movement — Komensk^
the great Bohemian educator — The " dark ages " following
the end of Bohemian independence — Nature of the present
elementary school system — Character of school buildings
— Teachers and their training — The secondary school
system — Gymnasia and real-schools — Weakness in the
system of the education of girls — Technical and industrial
education — The university of Prague ■ — Its influence during
the mediseval period — In the hands of Jesuits and Germans
— Revival of the Bohemian faculties — Influence on the
national life and development.
The Bohemians have very wisely made edu-
cation a prominent feature of the great move-
ment which they have so forcefully inaugurated
to regain the losses of Bila Hora. The elemen-
tary school system which they have developed
in recent times is superior in general efficiency
to that of Austria, and in most of its essential
features it is quite comparable with the excel-
lent system in Germany.
For more than a century before the outbreak
of the disastrous Thirty Years' War Bohemia
occupied a commanding place in the matter of
general education. The greatest educator of
233
234 Bohemia and the Cechs
modern times — John Amos Komensky ^ —
was a Bohemian ; and the progressive state
school systems of Germany, France, Holland,
Norway, ^Sweden, Denmark, England, the
United States and Japan were conceived and
worked out in their most important particulars
by him nearly three hundred years ago.
Bila Hora was followed by two centuries of
"dark ages." The great national literature
of the country was destroyed; the foremost
educators and spiritual leaders were executed
or sent into exile; the lands of the prosperous
classes were confiscated, and illiteracy, super-
stition, and ignorance became the inheritance
of a once-educated and intelligent people. But
the bow of promise is once more large in the
educational sky of Bohemia; and the rejuve-
nated nation has set itself to the task of en-
lightening its people and training them for use-
fulness and happiness, and this with a spirit of
self-sacrifice that is worthy of a large measure
of praise.
The present elementary school system of Bo-
hemia practically dates from the year 1848.
The compulsory period of school attendance is
' For an account of the labours of Komensky see the Author's
Comenius and the beginnings of educational reform. New York
and London, 1900.
Education in Bohemia 235
from the sixth to the fourteenth year of the
child's life, and the required studies are the
Bohemian language (reading and composition,
with spelling and penmanship), arithmetic and
elementary geometry, history, drawing, geog-
raphy, natural history, religion, and gymnas-
tics, with domestic science added for the girls.
There are two divisions of the elementary
school period — the first including the first five
school years, and the second the sixth, seventh
and eighth school years. As the elementary
schools are practically in the hands of the mu-
nicipalities, the Bohemians have encountered
less obstacles here than in secondary education
where the control is largely in the hands of the
central government. Both the cost of erecting
and of maintaining such schools falls chiefly on
the municipalities.
In Prague and elsewhere in the kingdom
some model modern school buildings are found,
complying to a remarkable degree with the de-
mands of hygiene and sanitation; and the
school physician is an important feature of the
system. The St. Adalbert school in Prague, an
elementary school for girls, struck me as one of
the most scientifically constructed school plants
that I had met in Europe, and I have visited
236 Bohemia and the Cechs
schools in most of the European countries.
And the St. Adalbert school was by no means
an exception.
The sessions of the elementary schools in
Bohemia are longer than in the United States.
Children in the first and second grades attend
school in the morning from eight to ten ; in the
third, fourth, and fifth grades from eight to
eleven, and in the sixth, seventh, and eighth
grades from eight to twelve. In the afternoon
aU grades are in school from two to four
o'clock. There are, however, brief rest pauses
at the end of each hour. There is also a brief
session on Sunday morning for religious in-
struction and attendance at mass, the teacher
accompanying the children. In some of the
elementary schools I found well-installed
■shower-bath plants and day nurseries, the
latter for the accommodation of mothers
who are required to labour in factories or on
farms.
Teachers in the elementary schools are
trained in normal schools, much as they are in
Germany, France, and the United States. The
sexes in the normal schools, as in the elemen-
tary and the secondary schools, are always sep-
arated. There are normal schools for the train-
Education in Bohemia 237
ing of teachers for boys at Prague, Kralove
Hradec, Jicin, Kutna Hora, Sobeslav, and
Plzen ; and for the training of teachers of girls
at Prague, Kladno, Chrudim, and Budejovice.
Judged by American standards, the salaries of
Bohemian teachers are very low. Teachers in
the first five grades of the elementary schools
begin with $155 a year, plus an allowance for
house rent which, in the cities, amounts to about
$80 a year. After two years of service the sal-
ary is advanced to $250, and there are regular
annual additions to the salary every five years
thereafter. In the advanced grades of the ele-
mentary schools — sixth, seventh, and eighth —
teachers begin with $400 a year, with allowance
for dwelling and a graded increase. The sal-
aries of principals of schools are somewhat
higher, although the difference between the
compensation of the grade teacher and the prin-
cipal is distinctly less in Bohemia than in
America. In schools where the German lan-
guage is taught there is an added bonus.
Teachers retire with a pension after forty years
of service.^
The secondary school system is much more
* For an account of the elementary school system of Bohemia
see: Rozvoj Ndrodniho Skolstvi. 1848-1908. Roudnice, 1908.
238 Bohemia and the Cechs
largely under the control of the central gov-
ernment, although the maintenance comes in
large part from the municipalities and the king-
dom. The gymnasia, or classical schools, pre-
pare for the university, and the real-schools,
which lay special emphasis on the modem lan-
guages and the sciences, prepare for the higher
technical schools. The gymnasia have an eight
year course and the real-schools seven, although
both require the equivalent of three or four
years in an elementary school for admission.
Candidates for the secondary schools are ex-
pected to have an elementary knowledge of the
mother tongue — reading, spelling, composi-
tion, and penmanship, with the elements of
number.
The Bohemian secondary schools do not re-
ceive a fair proportion of the monies expended
for gymnasia and real-schools. For the past
twelve years, the gymnasia of Bohemia (in-
cluding Moravia and Silesia) received forty-
one and a half per cent, of the money raised
for this purpose in the Cisleithanian states, but
the gymnasia in which the Bohemian language
is the medium of instruction got only twenty-
three. In the distribution of the funds raised
for the support of real-schools they fared a bit
Education in Bohemia 239
better. Fifty-two and a half per cent, of the
amount raised went to Bohemia, the Cech real-
schools getting twenty-nine and a half per cent,
of the whole amount. In the city of Prague
there is one gymnasium for every sixty-two
thousand Cech inhabitants, while the Germans
have one for every six thousand seven hundred
inhabitants; for every sixty-two thousand in-
habitants the Bohemians in the same city have
one real-school, while the Germans have a real-
school for every ten thousand inhabitants.
There are no parallel classes in the German
secondary schools of the capital, while the Bo-
hemians are forced to maintain twenty such
classes. This means crowded conditions; and
the marvel is that the national schools are able
to accomplish such excellent results under cirT
cumstances so altogether unfavourable. As
Professor Drtina ^ recently pointed out, the
Bohemians should at once have six more gym-
nasia and the same number of real-schools to
equalize the representation of secondary edu-
cation with the Germans. The average annual
cost per pupil in the German gymnasia is sixty-
two dollars; in the Bohemian gymnasia it is
1 Die Staatsvoranschlag 1908 und das oechisehe Mittleschul-
wesen. By Dr. Fr. Drtina. Cechische Revue, May, 1908. Vol.
2, pp. 594-609.
240 Bohemia and the Cechs
fifty-four dollars ; and the respective figures for
the education of the students in real-schools
are forty-eight and thirty-nine dollars. It will
thus be seen that the Bohemians, who pay
their proportion of the cost of secondary edu-
cation, fail to get their share of the appropria-
tions.
The education of girls is the weakest part of
the secondary school system of Bohemia, and
this seems to be largely due to the fact that the
government entrusts most of this work to mon-
astic institutions. The state has subsidized of
late an increasing number of private schools
for girls belonging to the teaching orders of
the Eoman Catholic church. Such schools, Bo-
hemian educators insist, do not give secondary
education in the modern sense of the word, and
Professor Drtina goes so far as to declare them
not only unsuitable but harmful. In order that
the secondary schools for girls may train
women for their sphere in the life of the fam-
ily— and in case they remain unmarried give
them the kind of an education that will fit them
for independent social positions — he says " it
is necessary that the state take the administra-
tion of secondary education out of the hands of
private institutions."
Education in Bohemia 241
Coordinate with the gymnasia and real-
schools are numerous kinds and grades of tech-
nical schools. Some of these fit for the higher
institutes of technology, but most of them pre-
pare for industry and commerce. The state
controls thirteen such schools in Bohemia, eight
of which are for the Germans and only five
for the Bohemians. The Cech schools are at
Prague, Pardubice, Plzen, Smichov, and Brno.
Here again the German schools get the lion's
share of the funds appropriated for this form
of education. In consequence the Bohemians
are forced to support a large number of pri-
vate technical secondary schools to meet the
growing needs of their nationality.
Besides these state schools, there are numer-
ous industrial schools that are maintained by
the municipalities or by private associations.
These are sometimes located in small towns and
are affiliated with the industries of the locality.
Sometimes they are organized by the members
of the different trades and crafts to supplement
the apprentice system. The town of Bechyne,
with less than twenty-five hundred inhabitants,
has a pottery school which gives practical
courses in vases and crockery ware, porcelain
stoves and chimneys, and painting on porcelain,
242 Bohemia and the Cechs
glass, majolica, and faience. The school is in
an agricultural conununity where there are
quantities of clay-soil that is excellent for pot-
tery. In the* larger towns commercial and in-
dustrial instruction is given in what are called
continuation schools. Girls, for example, who
begin needlework in the elementary schools,
are given courses covering one year or more in
sewing, dressmaking, art embroidery, decora-
tive lace work, and painting on textiles. There
are also courses for the boys which prepare for
the sugar, brewing, watchmaking, and other me-
chanical industries.^ The arts and crafts move-
ment, which is attaining such large educational
importance in America, is one of the marked
features of the educational system of Bohemia.
In many lines of manual occupations as means
of education the Bohemians may be counted
among the leaders in Europe, as those who in-
spected the exhibit of the manual arts, made
by Professor Alois Bouda of Prague recently
in London in connection with the manual train-
ing congress, willingly admitted. ■ Untrammelled
by tradition, and with a large measure of the
* For an account of technical education in Bohemia see :
James Baker's Report on technical and contmercial education
in East Prussia, Poland, Galicia, Silesia, and Bohemia. London,
1900.
Education in Bohe^iia 243
artistic impulse natural to the race, the Bohe-
mian industrial schools are solving in a highly
interesting manner the problem of the educa-
tional meaning of the manual arts and indus-
tries.
There are also two institutes of technology
in Prague — one for Bohemians and one for
Germans — which are coordinate in rank with
the university. The course of study covers
four years and only students who have com-
pleted the work of the real-schools are admitted.
There are special courses in the Bohemian in-
stitute of technology for engineers, physicists,
chemists, machinists, opticians, architects,book-
keepers, etc. There are also special depart-
ments for master-workmen, such as bricklayers,
stonemasons, carpenters, cabinet-makers, join-
ers, etc. Besides these special institutions there
are several art schools and conservatories of
music at Prague.
Eeference has already been made to the or-
ganization of the university of Prague during
the period of Charles IV. The emperor-king
spent his boyhood in France and he may have
been a student at the university of Paris. That
institution, at any rate, was taken as his model.
The university undoubtedly grew out of a ca-
244 Bohemia and the Cechs
thedral school whicli had been in existence for
several centuries. Masters gave instruction in
grammar, logic, and the natural philosophy of
Aristotle, and the school was patronized by-
large numbers of students from Austria, Styria,
and Bavaria, as well as Bohemia. Vaclav I
(1230-1253) had attempted to transform the
cathedral school into a university, but the move-
ment was defeated by the opposition of the
nobles.
The petition for a bull of foundation was
sent by Charles to the pope in 1346, and the
next year Clement VI granted the necessary
permission. The institution seems to have been
well patronized from the first, since a few years
after its foundation it had two thousand stu-
dents. The first students were chiefly young
nobles and well beneficed ecclesiastics, many of
whom had been attending the university of Bo-
logna where they had enjoyed exceptional priv-
ileges. All the faculties except civil law — sub-
sequently added — were represented from the
first. As in the other mediaeval universities,
the students were organized into " nations."
The Bohemian nation included the students
from Bohemia, Moravia, Hungary, and the
other Slavic lands; the Bavarian nation those
Education in Bohemia 245
from Bavaria, Austria, Swabia, Franconia, and
the Ehinelands; the Polish nation those from
Poland, Silesia, Eussia, and Lithuania, and the
Saxon nation those from Saxony, Thuringia,
Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. It will thus
be seen that most of the countries of western
Europe were represented.
The funds for the maintenance of the uni-
versity were at first supplied by the royal ex-
chequer, but after 1352 they were in the main
defrayed by contributions from the revenues of
the monasteries and chapters throughout the
kingdom. Colleges became a feature of the
institution after 1366, when King Charles col-
lege was organized and twenty years later
King Vaclav college was founded ; but the col-
lege system differed from the English (where
it originated) in that the colleges were prima-
rily intended for the use of the professors and
instructors.
The university from the first became the cen-
tre of the literary, political, and spiritual life
of the nation, and it was the chief factor in the
great moral revolution led by Master John Hus
during the early years of the fifteenth century.
At this time came the split which resulted in
the organization of the university of Leipzig.
246 Bohemia and the Cechs
The German forces in the university — both
teachers and students — had opposed the move-
ment for church reform advocated by the Bo-
hemians ; and by a coalition with the other for-
eign nations, they deposed Hus from the rec-
torship and condemned his teachings. But, by
a royal decree of the 18th of January, 1409, the
administrative council of the university was
altered, and the voting power of the foreign-
ers diminished. This placed the control of the
institution in the hands of the Bohemians. The
Germans promptly took an oath to leave the
university if the decree were not withdrawn.
The king was unwilling to yield ; and five thou-
sand German students and masters left in a
body on the 9th of May, 1409.
The university remained in the hands of the
Bohemians down to the time of the battle of
the White Mountain (1620), when it was given
to the Jesuits, who transformed it into a college
of the traditional Jesuit type. When they were
driven from the country by Maria Theresa and
Joseph II (1773), it passed into the hands of
the Germans; and it was not until 1882 that
the Bohemians again gained a foothold in their
historic institution of higher learning. At that
time the Austrian government permitted the
Education in Bohemia 247
organization of Cech. faculties to be coordinate
in rank with the German faculties.
Hence, at the present time, there are two
universities in Prague with complete faculties
of theology, law, medicine, and philosophy.
The Bohemian faculties, however, soon out-
distanced the Germans both in numbers of stu-
dents and quality of work. In the Bohemian
faculties there are more than four thousand
students, while in the German faculties there
are less than one-fourth that number. The
Bohemian theological faculty, according to the
most recent available statistics, had 130 stu-
dents ; the law faculty, 1747 ; the medical fac-
ulty (including students in pharmacy), 644;
and the philosophical faculty, 1431. Three-
fourths of the students come from Bohemia,
and the balance from Moravia, Silesia, Bos-
nia, Styria, Dalmatia, and other Slavic coun-
tries.
Since the university has once more become
a national institution, it has begun to play an
important role in the revival of the culture of
" the glory that was Bohemia "before the fatal
event at Bila Hora. The leaders of the new
national movement, with scarcely an exception,
have been trained in the university. Most of
248 Bohemia and the Cechs
the literary men of the country — Safarik,
Vrchlicky, Vlcek, Grebauer, Fric, Masaryk,
Drtina, Cada, Novak, to select at random a
few names — are, or have been, connected with
the university of Prague.
CHAPTER XIII
BOHEMIAN LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
Origin of the Bohemian language — The original Cyrillic alpha-
bet — • Adoption of the Latin characters — Function of the
consonants — Two branches of the Bohemian language —
Eariy historic development of a prose literature — Its de-
struction by the Jesuits after the Thirty Years' War —
Question of the manuscripts — Early Bohemian hymns —
Kristian and Cosmos of Prague — Literary renaissance during
the Hussite moral revolution — John Ziika, — John Amos
Komensk^ — Two centuries of intellectual barrenness —
Dobrovslc^ and the commencement of the modern renais-
sance — - Jungmann, KoUar, and Safaffk — FrantiSek Palack^
and the history of Bohemia — Ecclesiastical censorship and
its influence on literature — Hanka and Tyl — Dramatic
literature — Modern Bohemian poets — Zeyer — SlS.dek —
Cech — Vrchhck^ — Machar and Svoboda — Bohemian nov-
elists — Critical and historical works — VliSek — Bartos — •
Masaryk — Scientific literature — Geography, travel, and
description — Recent historical writers — Count Ltitzow.
Before giving an account of the recent ex-
traordinary development of Bohemian litera-
ture, it will not be out of place to say a word
concerning the language of the people — its
origin, nature, and relation to the larger Sla-
vonic linguistic family. The Bohemian lan-
guage is spoken by more than eight million
people, seven and three-fourths millions of
249
250 Bohemia and the Cechs
whom are in the Hapsburg empire, more than
two hundred thousand in the United States,
seventy thousand in Prussia, and sixty thou-
sand in Riftsia. The earliest literary form of
the language came to Bohemia from Macedonia
through Cyril and Methodus, two Orthodox
Greek priests who brought Christianity to the
country during the ninth century. These mis-
sionaries had laboured among Slavonic tribes
in Macedonia, and while there had invented the
Cyrillic alphabet and translated the Bible into
the Slavic tongue. The Slavic Bible which they
brought with them became the accepted written
form of the Bohemian language.
The subsequent adoption of the Latin char-
acters, after the Bohemians had been brought
under the influence of the Eoman church, re-
quired the use of a number of accented letters
to meet the requirements of the language, since
the Cyrillic alphabet had forty-one characters.
The extra accented Latin letters, which take
the place of original sounds, are a as o in arm,
c as ch in child, e as in the word ere, e as in ye,
n as in the Spanish word canon, f as rsh or rzh,
s as sh, u as our u in rude, y as in our ee, and
z as in the English word azure. There are few
silent letters in the Bohemian language, al-
Bohemian Language and Literature 251
though one frequently encounters syllables
without vowels, a fact which makes the lan-
guage difficult for the English student.
Bohemians, however, maintain that it is just
as easy to pronounce syllables without vowels
as in English to give utterance to words with
mute vowels. The Bohemian word trn (thorn)
is pronounced as the second syllable of the Eng-
lish word bittern, where the vowel is silent.
Such syllables always contain the consonant I
or r which the Bohemians regard as "half
vowels," since they take the place of vowels.
Like the ancient languages of Grreece and Rome,
the Bohemian is highly inflected, and its nu-
merous rules and grammatical forms make it
difficult for the Englishman or American. It
may be noted, however, that in colloquial usage
the distinctions of gender in pronouns, adjec-
tives, and verbs are frequently disregarded.
The striking vocal contrasts which the Cech
presents to the foreigner are aptly referred to
by F. Marion Crawford as " the undefinable
character of the Bohemian language, in which
tones softer than those of the softest southern
tongue alternate so oddly with rough gutturals
and strident sibilants."
There are two branches of the Cech language,
252 Bohemia and the Cechs
due to the long separation of the two divisions
of the race. The largest branch includes the
people of Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia, and
the second the Slovaks of Hungary, whom the
Magyars have tried so desperately but unsuc-
cessfully to absorb. This separation, due to
the terrible consequences of Bila Hora, is to be
deplored. As a Bohemian literary critic^ re-
marks : ' ' While it is admitted that the Slovak
dialect was called forth by an urgent need, and
while the innovation always had and now has
a wide and appreciative public in both literary
and journalistic fields, yet purely scientific lit-
erature can never thrive in Slovakland, lacking
as it does the requisite sources of material sup-
port. The ties of culture that unite the Bohe-
mian-Slovak nation are strong and indissolu-
ble, and, notwithstanding the fact that the twO'
peoples have parted, their literatures appear to
us as a literary unit, forming a circle within a
circle and supplementing one another."
As pointed out in earlier chapters, the devel-
opment of the vulgar tongue iuto a literary
language took place in Bohemia at a compara-
tively early historic period — several centuries
* DSjiny Literatury Cesk€. By Jaroslav Vl^ek. Prague,
1880.
Bohemian Language and Literature 253
in advance of Germany. Indeed the prose lit-
erature of Bohemia is one of the oldest in Eu-
rope— the Greek and Latin, of course, ex-
cepted. But the Jesuit book-destroyers have
made it difficult for modern historians to pass
judgment on its worth, since hundreds of thou-
sands of Bohemian books were destroyed dur-
ing the dark ages which followed the close of
the Thirty Years' War. Jesuit priests accom-
panied by mounted soldiers scoured the king-
dom and burned all the Bohemian books and
Bibles that they could find. The Jesuit Konias
in 1760 boasted that he alone had burned sixty
thousand Bohemian books !
It is, as Count Liitzow^ points out, " only
possible to attempt to conjecture as to the value
of the lost works, but Bohemian writers agree
in thinking that many had considerable his-
torical merit. Second, of course to non-Roman
theological writings, the book-destroyers relent-
lessly pursued all works of a historical char-
acter which might suggest to the Bohemian
people the contrast between their glorious past
and their present servile and miserable condi-
tion. It may be mentioned as a proof of this.
* A history of Bohemian literature. By Count Lutzow. New
York and London, 1899.
254 Bohemia and the Cechs
that even the historical work of Pope Pius II
(^neas Sylvius), which deals with Bohemia,
was ordered to be destroyed. ' '
A few writings that had been carried to Sax-
ony and Slavonia by the Protestant exiles after
the battle of White Mountain have been pre-
served and constitute the fragments out of
which the literary history of Bohemia before
the seventeenth century must be constructed;
but these fragments are " only the planks of a
ship that was wrecked on the ocean of national
vicissitude. ' '
Of the early poetry, the remains are few
and of doubtful origin. The " Question of the
Manuscripts," which excited intense interest,
caused bitter discussion, and started the great
literary revival of the past century, is too long
and complicated a story to relate in any detail
in a work of this general character. Briefly
stated : At the beginning of the nineteenth cen-
tury poetic manuscripts were discovered at
Kralove Dvur and Zelena Hora ^ which sup-
posedly dated back to the tenth and eleventh
centuries. They excited universal interest and
' For an English translation of the Krdlov^ Dvflr MS. see:
Cheskian Anthology. By John Bowring. London, 1832. Albert
Henry Wratislaw pubhshed an EngUsh translation of both
manuscripts in 1852,
Bohemian Language and Literature 255
were promptly translated into a dozen Euro-
pean languages. The Kralove Dvur manuscript
contained six ballads of considerable poetic
merit which dealt with the early history of Bo-
hemia, and the Zelena Hora manuscript con-
sisted of two fragments of parchment contain-
ing a " Decree of the domestic law " and the
' ' Judgment of Libusa. ' '
Doubt was cast upon the authenticity of the
manuscripts from the first, although Franti-
sek Palacky, Pavel Josef Safafik, and other
leaders of the new literary movement believed
them to be genuine and defended them against
the attacks of the German critics. Within a
dozen years, however, most Bohemian scholars
have come to the conclusion that the documents,
if not forgeries, belong to a period considerable
later than the tenth century.
The most ancient poetic document in the Bo-
hemian language is the hymn " Lord, have
mercy on us," which has been sung in reli-
gious services since the time of Cyril, and
may have been composed by him. Several
other hymns of an early date are associated
with the names of St. Vaclav and Prokop the
Great.
The earliest prose literature is mainly his-
256 Bohemia and the Cechs
torical in character.^ Ludmila and the mar-
tyrdom of Vaclav, by Kristian, dates from the
end of the tenth century. Cosmos of Prague,
who was canon and afterwards dean of the
chapter at the capital, has left a chronicle of
Bohemia in Latin. Dalimil, a Bohemian noble-
man, wrote a history of the country in the
national language at the beginning of the four-
teenth century. Pfibik Pulkava, rector of the
collegiate school of St. Giles, was another four-
teenth century chronicler. This author's well-
known life of Charles IV was written originally
in the Latin but was later translated into the
Bohemian.
The Hussite era was the most brilliant early
literary period of Bohemia. The great moral
revolution brought to the front a score of po-
lemical and historical writers, such as Peter
of Mladenovic, the biographer of Hus ; Law-
rence of Bf ezov, a nobleman and master of arts
in the university of Prague, who wrote a sig-
nificant chronicle covering the Hussite wars;
John 2izka, a maker as well as a writer of his-
tory, whose To the allies at D'omazlice Liitzow
' For accounts of the early historical writers see: Lectures
on the historians of Bohemia. By Count Liitzow. London,
1905; also, Wurdigung der alten bomischen Geschichtsschreiber.
By FrantiSek PalackJ-. Prague, 1829.
Bohemian Language and Literature 257
pronounces " the most valuable record of the
Hussite wars "; ^neas Sylvius, a scholar of
the renaissance period who wrote a history of
Bohemia; Bartos, who writes of the seditions
and tumults at Prague which culminated in the
accession to the Bohemian throne by the Haps-
burgs; Sixt of Ottersdorf, whose Record book
records the conflicts between the nobles and
Ferdinand I, and Jan Blahoslav and Jacob
Bilek, historians of the religious sect known as
the Bohemian Brethren.
The writers that belong to the period imme-
diately preceding and following Bohemia's
fatal part in the Thirty Years' War include
William Count Slavata, originally a member of
the Bohemian Brethren community but who
joined the Catholic church, became a trusted
councillor of Ferdinand II, and wrote an ex-
haustive historical work ; Skala ze Zhore, ' ' per-
haps the greatest Bohemian historian before
Palacky, ' ' who wrote ten large folio volumes on
the history of the church ; Andrew of Habern-
feld, who fought on the national side at the
battle of White Mountain, and wrote Bellum
Bohemicum, and Paul Stransky, who wrote
while in exile in Holland for the Elzevirs his
Respvhlica Bojema. The most important con-
258 Bohemia and the Cechs
tributions of this period, however, were made
by John Amos Komensky (1592-1670), the great
educational leader. Many of his writings were
destroyed during the Thirty Years ' War, as he
was exiled from the country after Bila Hora,
but he continued to write in the Bohemian lan-
guage during his long years of exile in England,
Holland, Sweden, Poland, and Transylvania.^
To except the Jesuit historian Balbinus, Bo-
hemia did not produce a consequential writer
during the long period of Austrian and clerical
supremacy that followed Bila Hora.
In explanation of the two centuries of intel-
lectual barrenness which followed the end of
Bohemian independence. Count Liitzow writes :
" The ancient constitution of the country was
suppressed, and a system of slightly veiled ab-
solutism replaced it. Confiscation of land took
place on an enormous scale, and foreign nobles
— mainly generals of the imperial army — ob-
tained the estates of the ancient Protestant
nobility of Bohemia. The inhabitants of the
' There are English translations of four of the works of Ko-
mensky. Mr. M. W. Keatinge has translated the Great didactic
(London and New York, 1896); Count Lutzow has translated
the Labyrinth of the world (London, 1900) ; Mr. C. W. Bardeen
has republished Charles Hoole's edition of the Orbis pictus (Syra-
cuse, 1887), and I have made a translation of the School of ivr-
fancy (Boston and London, 1896).
Bohemian Language and Literature 259
towns, many of which had been strongholds of
the national church, were driven into exile;
and immigrants, generally of German birth,
took their place. As regards the peasantry,
whom the system of serfdom attached to the
soil — for the cultivation of which they were
required — sinister arguments such as the pil-
lory, the whipping post, and the gallows grad-
ually induced to conform to the church of
Kome. ' ' The few books that were written in Bo-
hemia during the two centuries that the Jesuits
were the intellectual and spiritual masters of
the country were in Latin or German ; and, to
except the work of Klatov Balbinus, already
referred to, and of Josef Dobrovsky, shortly to
be mentioned, they had no permanent value.
The modern Bohemian renaissance has been
described in an earlier chapter. The recent lit-
erary revival is a part of that movement. Josef
Dobrovsky (1753-1829), the patriarch of Slavic
philology, was the oldest of the group of lit-
erary men that inaugurated that movement. At
an early age Dobrovsky had become a member
of the Society of Jesus, but with the suppres-
sion of the order he became a private tutor and
gave his spare moments to the study of philol-
ogy. He did not share with Jungmann, Pa-
260 Bohemia and the Cechs
lacky, KoUar, and Safafik their aspirations for
the rehabilitation of the national language, for
he believed it too long dead to be revived ; but
he had the scholar's interest in the archaeology
in the language; and all the Slavic races owe
him a large debt of gratitude for his scholarly
works on the grammar of the Bohemian lan-
guage and his history of its ancient literature.
His books were printed in German ; and when
the journal of the new museum was launched,
he strenuously opposed its publication in Bo-
hemian. He was one of the earliest of the
Bohemian scholars to question the authenticity
of the Zelena Hora manuscript, and recent
judgment confirms his doubts.
Josef Jungmann (1773-1847) shares with Pa-
lacky the honour of reviving the Bohemian as
a literary vehicle. As a lad he had learned to
speak the national language in his native vil-
lage of Hudlice; but as German was the only
language that was taught in the schools he
eventually forgot his mother tongue. Upon a
visit to his native town, after attaining man-
hood, he was chagrined to find that he could
no longer speak the Cech. " From that mo-
ment," he writes, " I became a true Bohe-
mian "; and he consecrated the remainder of
Bohemian Language and Literature 261
his life to the rehabilitation of the Bohemian
language and literature. He united teaching —
first at Litomef ice and later at Prague — with
literary work and laboured with a truly mis-
sionary spirit to unearth the Bohemian people
from two centuries of German alluvium. His
earliest literary work was the translation of
foreign classics into the Cech — Milton's Para-
dise lost from the English, Gothe's Hermann
und Dorothea from the German, and Chateau-
briand's Atala from the French. In 1835 he
began the publication of his monumental dic-
tionary of the Bohemian and German languages
in five volumes. It was a pioneer work of vast
research, and was accomplished under almost in-
superable difficulties. Jungmann's letters give
us our most intimate accounts of the struggles
of himself and his co-patriots during the early
days of the modern Bohemian renaissance.
John KoUar (1793-1852) was born of Prot-
estant parents in Slavonia and he was at an
early age destined for the church. While a
student in the theological faculty at the imi-
versity of Jena he became imbued with the
spirit of national unity then to the fore in the
academic life of Germany, and he dreamed of
a like movement for the unity of the Slmc
262 Bohemia and the Cechs
peoples. This dream lie embodied in Ms lit-
erary masterpiece the Daughter of Sldva. Af-
ter serving as pastor of a Protestant church for
a number of years he was called to the profes-
sorship of Slavic archaeology in the university
of Vienna. It is to KoUar that we are indebted
for the epigrammatic statement of the history
of European literatures — Slavic, dawn ; Ger-
man, day ; English, midday ; French, afternoon ;
Spanish, night.^ Mr. Capek very truly says of
him : * ' He it was who first sought to inculcate
in the Slavs the sentiment of Slavonic patri-
otism. Moreover, by his prophecies, KoUar
filled the Slavs with hope and confidence. If
Isaiah was the oracle of the Hebrews, KoUar
may be said to have been the seer of the Sla-
vonians. ' ' ^
Another Slovak who played a large part in
the literary revival of Bohemia was Paul Josef
Safarik (1795-1861). He was the son of a Prot-
estant pastor ; and, after completing his studies
at the university of Jena, he Isecame first prin-
cipal of a secondary school at Novy Sad and
later professor of Slavic philology at the uni-
* RAnoSlowan; den N^mci magj; Anglicko poledne; Francanz
BwaSky; a Hispani noc.
^ The Slovaks of Hungary. By Thomas Capek. New York,
1906.
Bohemian Language and Literature 263
versity of Prague. His earliest literary effort
was a volume of verse — The Carpathian muse
— published at the age of nineteen; and his
next publications translations — The clouds of
Aristophanes and Maria Stuart of Schiller.
He subsequently published a history of the
Slavic language and literature and a compre-
hensive work on Slavic antiquities which Pa-
lacky declared " will live imperishable, contin-
uing to yield bountiful fruit as long as the Sla-
vonians and their history shall endure." In
comparing KoUar and Safarik, Mr. Capek
writes: " Of different temperaments and in-
clinations — Safafik was a scholar, exact and
critical, while KoUar knew how to appeal to the
imagination through his passionate ardour,
even though his arguments sometimes lacked
in depth and discrimination — Saf afik and Kol-
lar both worked toward the same end, the first
unconsciously, may be, but the other with a
design. That end was Slavonic brotherhood."
One of the greatest historians of modern
times — ranking with Freeman in England and
Motley in our own country — was Frantisek Pa-
lacky (1798-1876), the son of a Protestant pas-
tor in Moravia. His ancestors had been leaders
of the Bohemian Brethren ; but, when the Prot-
264 Bohemia and the Cechs
estant religion was suppressed after the battle
of the White Mountain, they had nominally
conformed to the Roman Catholic church.
When Joseph II granted religious toleration
to his subjects, the Palacky family promptly
resumed the Protestant faith. Having acquired
a good grounding in historical studies, as well
as in languages (iacluding the English), at the
Protestant college at Pressburg in Hungary,
Palacky made the acquaintance of Saf afik, who
gave him letters of introduction to a few pa-
triots in Prague, including Dobrovsky, who was
on terms of intimacy with Metternich. Some of
the Bohemian noblemen, to whom he was intro-
duced, shared his zeal for the resurrection of
the sources of the national history, and ren-
dered him material aid.
With the organization of the Bohemian Na-
tional Museum, Palacky became the editor of
its journal — published at first in both the Bo-
hemian and the German languages, although
the latter was shortly discontinued. In reply
to one of the noblemen that it would be better
to publish the journal exclusively in German,
since it was too late to attempt to raise the
Bohemian nation from the dead, Palacky said :
"If we all take that view then, indeed, our
Bohemian Language and Literature 265
nation must perish from intellectnal famine.
As for me, if I were a gypsy by birth, and the
last descendant of that race, I should consider
it my duty to strive with all my power that the
honoured records of my race might be pre-
served to the history of humanity. ' '
Palacky's history of Bohemia will be his abid-
ing monument, and he himself very properly
regarded it as the chief work of his life. Pre-
liminary to its publication, he made a careful
study of the archives of Bohemia, Germany,
and Italy and made copies and translations of
multitudes of historic sources. But the enor-
mous labour of collecting his materials was
dwarfed by the tremendous difficulties which
he encountered when he attempted to publish
his work. All printed writings in Bohemia
were under the control of the Austrian " cen-
sure-office," and the opposition of the govern-
ment to an authoritative history of the country
was not concealed. The government, notes
Count Liitzow, had an instinctive feeling that
" such a work would contradict the short ac-
counts of the past of Bohemia — written from
a strongly Eomanist and anti-Bohemian ten-
dency, and founded on Hajek's chronicle —
that were then in general use."
266 Bohemia and the Cechs
The first volume, dealing with the earliest
history of the country, was published in 1836
in both Bohemian and German. It was treated
leniently by the censors, because it dealt in the
main with periods which were half mythical,
and therefore regarded as harmless ; but when
the period of the moral revolution and the Hus-
site wars was reached, the ecclesiastical censors
recommended the suppression of the entire
work. Prince Metternich, with the instincts of
the politician, saw the danger of thus sum-
marily disposing of the work, and suggested
that passages which did not please the clerical
censors be stricken from the books or altered.
It seems quite incredible to us to'-day that so
recently as seventy years ago ecclesiastical cen-
sors, entirely unfamiliar with historical studies,
should have been delegated the power " to
strike out passages in an author's work that
displeased them and to insert passages in a
book that were often in direct contradiction
to the writer's views." And yet this was the
situation which the great Bohemian scholar was
forced to face in the year of Our Lord one thou-
sand eight hundred and forty !
Palacky found the ignorance of the ecclesi-
astical censors on historical matters monu-
Bohemian Language and Literature 267
mental; yet they had an unreasoning feeling
that anything said in praise of John Hus and
his followers would be harmful to morals ; and
as the great historian was left with Hobson's
choice, he was forced to publish his work in this
mutilated and altered form. He fortunately
lived to see the abolition of the ecclesiastical
censorship and to republish his history in its
original form. "Writing later of his tribula-
tions, Palacky says: " The Austrian govern-
ment was convinced that its past conduct as
regards Bohemia would not obtain praise from
the tribunal of history. What occurred during
the Thirty Tears' War and since that period
in the interior of Bohemia is still one of his-
tory's secrets; it makes the few who have at-
tempted slightly to lift the veil under which
these events are hidden shudder. ' '
The history of Bohemia was completed in
1867, but it only brings the story of the kingdom
down to the accession of the Bohemian throne
by the Hapsburgs in 1526. His other historical
works include an account of the precursors of
John Hus, a sketch of the early Bohemian his-
torical writers, and the publication of several
collections of historic sources. That his history
of Bohemia is one of the greatest historical
268 Bohemia and the Cechs
works published during the nineteenth century
is generally admitted. The regret is that it has
not been translated into the English. In addi-
tion to exacting literary labours, Palacky gave
liberally of his time to affairs of state; and,
as remarked in an earlier chapter, his rank as
a statesman was of no mean order. That
his countrymen appreciate his aid in its
rebirth is apparent from the patronypi so
often found linked with his name by Bohe-
mian writers — Otec Vlasti (Father of the
country) .
Yaclav Hanka (1791-1861) and Frantisek
Ladislav Celakovsky (1799-1877) belong to the
era of Jungmann and Palacky. Hanka was in
his day a favourite poet and a few of his songs
are still popular. He made numerous trans-
lations from the German, and edited the Dcerka
of John Hus and Dalimil's chronicle. Many
have attributed the Kralove Dvur manuscript
to him. Celakovsky translated Walter Scott's
Lady of the lake, published numerous poetical
works, and made collections of national songs.
To the same period belongs Frantisek Jaromir
Eubes (1814-1853), the author of the popular
Bohemian song Jd jsem Cech a Tcdo je vie? (I
am a Bohemian, and who is more?)
Bohemian Language and Literature 269
One of the first dramatic writers of the mod-
ern period was Josef Tyl (1808-1856), the au-
thor of the deservedly popular Bohemian song
Kde domov muj? (Where is my home?), a
free translation of which is given herewith :
"Where is my home?
Where is my home?
Waters thro' its meads are streaming,
Movmts with rustling woods are teeming,
Vales are bright with flowerets rare.
Oh earth's Eden, thou art fair!
Thou art my home, my fatherland!
Thou art my home, my fatherland!"
"Where is my home?
Where is my home?
By the towers of God 'tis bounded;
By the noblest sons surrounded;
True and light of heart are they.
Firm and bold in deadly fray,
Offspring grand of dear Bohemia, ^
Thou art my home, my fatherland.
Thou art my home, my fatherland."
Bohemian dramatic literature had little en-
couragement before the opening of the city
theatre in Prague in 1859. Plays by Klicpera
and Halek were given in the national language ;
and the three hundredth anniversary of the
birth of Shakespeare, which was celebrated
by the Artists' Club (Umelecka Beseda), to-
270 Bohemia and the Cechs
gether with Bohemian translations of a num-
ber of the plays of the great English drama-
tist, and their presentation by Josef Jiri Kolar
(1812-1896), a Bohemian histrionic artist of the
first ranl^, aroused keen interest in the drama,
and stimulated a score of men and women who
became the playwrights for the new national
theatre.
Eliska Krasnohorska was one of the first of
the new school. Her Singer of freedom (Pevec
volnosti) has been deservedly popular, and she
wrote the librettos for a number of the operas
of Smetana, Bendl, and Fibich. Frantisek V.
Jefabek (1836-1893) was the author of a pop-
ular comedy Servant of Ms master (Sluzebnik
sveho pana) and a historical drama The son of
man (Syn cloveka). Emanuel Bozdech (1841-
1889) drew his materials almost entirely from
French history, as in the Napoleonic comedies
Master of the world in a dressing gown (Sveta
pan V zupami) and General without an army
(General bez vojska). Frantisek Adolf Subert,
the first director of the new national theatre,
has written several notable plays which deal
with Bohemian history, as well as an amusing
comedy of the period of the Italian renaissance
— The love of Raffael (Laska Raffaelova).
Bohemian Language and Literature 271
Several of the contemporary verse writers
have also made important contributions to dra-
matic literature, as Simacek's naturalistic play
The lost ones, Victor Dyk's satirical comedies,
Hubert's historical dramas, and Jirasek's plays
dealing with the beginning of the modern na-
tional movement. Vrchlicky has adapted for
the stage the legend dealing with the Bohemian
bishop Vojtech and Zeyer has a dramatic poem
on the Judgment of Libusa, which is said to
represent " an unusually lofty and dreamy
imagination, but given to symbolism."
Julius Zeyer (1841-1901), who wrote in both
prose and poetry, belonged to the romantic
school. He worshipped beauty for its own
sake; was characterized for the boldness of
his imagination, and selected his themes almost
entirely from classical and historical fields.
His Judgment of Libusa, mentioned above, was
his most distinctly national theme. One of his
poems is based on the songs of Solomon and
one deals with St. Brandon and the period
of Irish history of the time of St. Patrick.
One of his novels deals with the intrigues of
the court of Catherine II of Russia and another
with the legends of the crucifixion.
Josef Vaclav Sladek (born at Zbiroz in 1845),
272 Bohemia and the Cechs
Boj.
the Bohemian translator of the poems of John
Hay, after finishing his studies at Prague trav-
elled in the United States; and, returning to
his native country, he engaged in educational
work as professor of English in a secondary
school and lecturer in the university. His first
volume of poems — At the threshold of Para-
dise— appeared in 1875, followed by In sun-
shine and shade, and other volumes of poems
for children and imitations of old Bohemian
folk-songs. His verses are characterized by
great simplicity and lyrical beauty. Besides
the poems of John Hay, Sladek has translated
the Hiawatha of Longfellow, Byron's Corsair,
many of the poems of Eobert Burns, a number
by Coleridge and several of the dramas of
Shakespeare. For twenty years (1877-1897) he
was the editor of the well-known Bohemian lit-
erary review Lumir.
Svatopluk Cech (1846-1908) is undoubtedly
the greatest of modern epic poets. He trav-
elled some years after completing his school
studies and for many years thereafter engaged
in editorial work on literary reviews — first as
associate editor of the Svetosor, then Lumir,
and for twenty years as editor of Kvety, which
he founded. Cech is distinctly a national poet.
SVATOPLUK CECH.
Bohemian Language and Literature 273
His style is original, natural, and full of grace,
vigour, and feeling; Ms verses, and particu-
larly his allegorical poems, are characterized
by humour and satire. His poems may be clas-
sified into four groups (1) historical, such as
£iska; (2) idyllic, such as In the shade of the
linden tree and A Christmas memory; (3) alle-
gorical, such as To truth (directed against hyp-
ocrisy) and The elf (which attacks the whims
of science) ; and (4) lyrical, such as New songs
(patriotic). Song of the slave (humanitarian),
and Prayers to the unknown (religious). He
is also the author of numerous tales, novels, and
works of travel. His best known novels are A
candidate for immortality, a satirical romance,
and Mr. Broucek's trip to the moon.
Jaroslav Vrchlicky (Emil Frida), the versa-
tile professor of modern European literature
in the university of Prague, is certainly the
most prolific and probably the most popular
poet in Bohemia to-day. He is the author of
one hundred volumes of verses ! Vrchlicky was
born at Louny in 1853 and was educated at the
gymnasium at Slany and the university of
Prague. For some years he was instructor in
the normal school and the institute of tech-
nology in Prague, but in 1893 he received his
274 Bohemia and the Cechs
present appointment in the university. He is
a master of almost all forms of verse, many of
which had not before been employed in Bohe-
mian poetry. In the wide range of his topics
and his extraordinary power of versification he
recalls our own Longfellow. His poetical works
include verses dealing with the subjective reac-
tions of the poet, such as From the depths and
My sonata; impressions from travel, such as
A year in the South (Italy) ; patriotic poems,
such as Voices in the desert and My country;
epic poems, such as Vittoria Colonna and Twar-
dowski (the Polish Faust) ; poems represent-
ing the life of the people, such as God and hu-
manity, and dramatic poems (more than thirty),
such as A night at Karluv Tyn, Rabbinical
wisdom, and The court of love. He has also
translated the Divine comedy by Dante and
Jerusalem delivered by Tasso from the Italian,
Gothe's Faust from the German, and poems
by Macaulay and Thompson from the English,
besides having published several prose works.^
Josef Svatopluk Machar, who takes high rank
as a poet of the modern realistic school, was
born at Kolfn in 1864 and educated at Prague.
' For a critical Bohemian study of this prolific author see:
Jaroslav Vrchlick^. By Alfred Jensen and AmoSt Kraus.
Prague, 1906.
JAKOSLAV VHCHLICKY.
Bohemian Language and Literature 275
He travelled extensively in Europe and then
settled down as a bank officer and poet. Al-
though himself a patriot, he is unsparing in his
satire on the mistakes of the political leaders
and is skeptical of the ultimate results of the
national struggle. In his first volume of verses
he directs his shafts against the superficiality
of society, and particularly politics. His Four
books of sonnets are marked by great charm;
his Magdalena deals with the social position of
woman; the same subject is treated with deep
sympathy in Here roses should bloom; Gol-
gotha contains a collection of poems on God,
religion, priests, fatherland, and patriots ; and
Excursions to the Crimea and In the glow of
the Hellenic sun give in verse his travel im-
pressions of southeastern Europe. Machar is
also the author of several prose works.
Frantisek X. Svoboda (born in 1860) shows
the influence of Vrchlicky in the perfection of
rhythm and metrical forms which he employs.
His published verses include Ripening of the
harvest, pictures of varying poetic moods. The
new villagers, and several realistic dramas.
In fiction, as in verse, the list of Bohemian
authors is a big one. Here the women have
taken honourable rank. The name of Bozena
276 Bohemia and the Cechs
Nemcova (1820-1862) is familiar to American
readers through a translation of The grand-
mother.^ Her novels deal with the life of peas-
ant foil? in Bohemian villages. Karolina Svetla
(1830-1899) also deals with realistic descrip-
tions of the life of peasants and the hard lot
of the women in such romances as The sisters,
The first Bohemian woman, and The family
record, in which she treats not only of the
social but also the industrial problems of her
sex. She was a prolific writer — the author of
ninety works of fiction — but her delineations
of character were apt and her style both direct
and refined. She founded the "Woman's Indus-
trial League at Prague in 1872, which led to the
organization of a higher industrial school for
girls.
The foremost historical novelist of Bohemia
is Alois Jirasek (born in 1851). Among the
currents deals with the years immediately pre-
ceding the Hussite wars ; The age treats of the
period of the national awakening, and At my
home is a study of local historic materials.
Jirasek is also the author of several dramas
which are highly esteemed in Bohemia, includ-
' The grandmother: a story of country life in Bohemia.
By BoJSena Nfimcovd,. Translated from the Bohemian into
English by Frances Gregor. Chicago, 1892.
ALOIS JIRASEK.
Bohemian Language and Literature 277
ing The test, The emigrant, John 2iska, and
Solitude. Novak remarks that Ms works are
characterized by truth and simplicity of style,
good proportions, graphic portrayal of char-
acter, and accurate pictures of the periods about
which he writes.^
Among other novelists may be named a dozen
who write of the life of the common people, as
Eais, who describes the inhabitants of the moun-
tainous corner of northwestern Bohemia in The
Improvement; Hamza who gives the serious
side of rural life in Backwoods; Klostermann
who tells of the hard lives of the people of the
beautiful Bohemian Forest in Where do the
children go; Vlcek who writes of his own boy-
hood in Scenes of early life; Holecek who de-
scribes southern Bohemian life in Ours; Hladik
who writes of modem social life in Passion and
strength; Simacek who romances in a psycho-
logical vein in Lights of the past, and Bozena
Kuneticka who gives social pictures of Prague
in Rebellion. This by no means exhausts the
list of Bohemian writers of fiction, but it gives
names and mentions works that are more or
less typical.
Jaroslav Vlcek, professor of the history of
* YfboT z Literatury 6esk6. By Jan V. Novdk. Prague, 1909.
278 Bohemia and the Oechs
Bohemian literature in the university of
Prague, besides the works of fiction mentioned
above, has published several scholarly and
critical works on the historical development of
Bohemian literature during the sixteenth, sev-
enteenth, and eighteenth centuries, and he is
now at work on an extensive account of the
development of the national literature (Litera-
tura Ceska XIX. stol.), four volumes of which
have already appeared. He has also written
a life of Pavel Josef Safafik, and a half dozen
social novels and historical romances.
Frantisek Bartos (1837-1906), the foremost
Moravian philologist and authority on folk-lore,
was many years a professor in gymnasia at
Straznice, Olomouc, and Brno, during which
time he made extended studies of the dialects
of the peasants. His first work was an anthol-
ogy of Bohemian poetry, followed by a study of
the life of the Moravian people, and three col-
lections of Moravian folk-songs. In Our chil-
dren (Nase deti) he depicted most sympathet-
ically Moravian child-life as seen in the games,
songs, sayings, and superstitions of the little
people.
Another philologist, perhaps the greatest,
was Jan Gebauer (1839-1907), for many years
Bohemian Language and Literature 279
professor in the university of Prague. His
historical grammar of the Bohemian language
and his dictionary of the old Bohemian are the
results of many years of arduous labour. His
dictionary (Starocesky slovnik) was unfortu-
nately left unfinished by his death. Professor
Josef Durdik, of the university of Prague, has
made important contributions to the literature
of aesthetics and philosophy, as well as literary
criticism. Among his notable works may be
named Universal (Esthetics, Concerning the po-
etry and character of Lord Byron, Historical
sketch of modern philosophy, and Historical
sketch of Greek philosophy. He has also trans-
lated Byron's Cain into the Bohemian and is
the author of several dramas. In this connec-
tion mention should be made of the considerable
and meritorious contributions to philosophy,
psychology, and pedagogy by Professors Ota-
kar Hostinsky, Frantisek Drtina, and Franti-
sek Cada. In the field of child-psychology Pro-
fessor Cada's contributions have taken high
rank, and they have often been reviewed in
American scientific journals.
Professor Tomas Masaryk,^ a political econ-
1 Since this work went to press Professor Masaryk's sixtieth
birthday has been celebrated. A recent number of Ceskd
Mysl, edited by Professors Cdda and KrejSi, and the foremost
280 Bohemia and the Cechs
omist trained in the most critical school of his
profession, is well and favourably known in the
United States through his courses of lectures
at the university of Chicago and other Ameri-
can institutions. Professor Masaryk was born
at Hodonin the 7th of March, 1850; educated
at the gymnasium at Straznice and the uni-
versity of Vienna, and was called to a profes-
sorship at Prague in 1882. For a number of
years he edited the critical review Athenceum,
and later Nase Doha (Our Times), which is still
published. His historical works include Blaise'
Pascal, John Hus: rebirth and reformation,
and Karel Havlicek. Among his sociological
works are Concerning suicide and The social
question. Both in scholarship and the sound-
ness of his views, Professor Masaryk is re-
garded as one of the first authorities in Europe
in his chosen field.
Bohemia's contribution to modern science
has been considerable, but it must be passed
over with the mention of a few of the leaders
— Jan E. Purkyne in physiology; Antonin
Fric, Josef Velenovsky, and Bohumil Nemec in
Bohemian philosophical review, (Volume XI, 1910, pp. 72-
228) is devoted to the life and labours of Professor Masaryk,
with appreciative articles by his colleagues, Professors Her-
ben, Krejgf, 6dda, Van6ura, Foustka, Vodak, Cem;^, Kddner,
HanuS, and BeneS.
Bohemian Language and Literature 281
botany ; Karel Vrba and Philip Pocta in geol-
ogy and mineralogy; Josef Krejci, Jan Pa-
lacky, Ladislav Celakovsky, and Frantisek Vel-
dovsky in zoology; J. Zenger, C. Strouhal, and
V. Svambera in physics; S. V. Presl, V. Sa-
fafik, B. Eayman, and Bohuslav Brauner in
chemistry, and Eiselt, Albert, Maixner, Schobl,
Deyl, Thomayer, Maydl, and Eeinsberg in med-
icine and surgery. Most of these have been
or now are professors in the university of
Prague.
• In the matter of the literature of geography,
travel, and description, the Bohemian output
is both extensive and creditable. The list in-
cludes the works of Emil Holub (1847-1901) on
the natural history and geography of South
Africa; Pavel Durdik (1843-1900) on Sumatra
and eastern Asia; Josef Wiinsch (1842-1907),
who has two series of travel-books — On land
and sea and Countries near and far; Einanuel
Fait's works on the Caucasus, Egypt, and
Turkestan; Jifi Guth, who has written on
North Africa and the United States; Josef
Stolba, who has several books on the Arctic
regions and Scandinavia ; Josef Kof ensky, who
has written a number of travel books of high
merit for children, as well as standard geo-
282 Bohemia and the Cechs
graphic works by Jan Palacky, F. G. Studnicka,
and V. Svambera.
It remains in closing to state briefly tbe re-
cent contributions to historical literature, for
it was in history, as already pointed out, that
Bohemia first won literary distinction. The
late Vaclav Vladivoj Tomek (1818-1906) is,
after Palacky, the greatest historian that the
country has produced. His monumental his-
tory of Prague in twelve volumes brings the
narrative of the capital down to the year 160S.
He also wrote a briefer history of Austria and
Bohemia, a life of John 2izka, and a number of
minor historical works. Reference has already
been made to the historical works of Anton
Gindely. His history of the Thirty Years ' War
and his account of the times of Rudolph II are
standard works, the former translated into
English. Jaroslav Goll's greatest work is a
history of the Bohemian Brethren. Mention
can only be made of the names of several other
historical writers — Josef Kalousek, Dr. Rezek,
Professor Tieftrunk, Cenek Zibrt, Josef Emler,
J. Pekaf, and Karel J. Erben; the essays of
Flajshans, Mourek, Novak, Patera, Jirecek,
Bfezina, Salda, Krejci and Hostinsky, and
VACLAV VLADIJOV TOMEK.
Bohemian Language and Literature 283
the political writings of Randa, Ott, Prazak,
Zucker, Rieger, and Braf.
. Mention must also be made of Francis Count
Liitzow, a Bohemian author whose works have
been written in English. Count Liitzow 's writ-
ings include a history of Bohemia, an account
of the earlier Bohemian literature, a historical
guide of Prague, the life and times of Master
John Hus, a translation of the Labyrinth of the
tvorld by Komensky, and numerous articles in
standard English and American reviews on Bo-
hemian topics. The English-speaking world
owes Count Liitzow a large debt of gratitude
for his efforts to make known the history and
literature of his country to many Englishmen
and Americans to whom these interesting top-
ics would otherwise have remained sealed books.
In this connection the author of the present
work wishes to express his deep obligation to
the writings of Count Liitzow in the prepara-
tion of this volume.^
' For further accounts of the literature of Bohemia see
Count Lutzow's History of Bohemian literature (London and
New York, 1899); Arne Novdk's Die cechische Literatur in
der Gegen^rart (Leipzig, 1907), and Jan V. Novdk's V^bor z
Literatury Cesk6 (Prague, 1909). I am indebted to these works
and to Mrs. Clara Vostrovsk^ Winlow for much of the material
used in this chapter.
CHAPTER XIV
PAINTEES AND PAINTINGS
Bohemia an art centre during the reign of Charles IV — The
league school of painting — Fourteenth century artists —
Theodore of Prague — The paintings in the Karluv T^
castle — Destruction of Bohemian art by Joseph II —
Revival of art traditions at the close of the eighteenth cent-
ury — The academy at Prague and its first directors — •
Effect of the roniantic movement on Bohemian artists —
Differentiation of Cech and German art — The Manfes, family
— New Bohemian society of fine arts — HelUch and Cermdk
^- Svoboda and Maixner — Josef Manfes and his followers —
ZeniSek and AleS — Influence of France on the painters of
Bohemia — Jaroslav CermAk, Pinkas, and Bro^ik — The
allegorical painters — Genre painters — Landscape painting
and the young artists of to-day.
During the fourteentli century Bohemia was
one of the leading countries of Europe in mat-
ters of art. Charles IV (1346-1378), king of
Bohemia and emperor of Germany, made
Prague the art centre of his vast dominions,
and he called hither large numbers of distin-
guished painters, sculptors, and architects.
The Prague school of painting at this period
took favourable rank with the art of northern
Italy. Theodore of Prague, sometimes called
Master Dietrich of Prague, was the leader of
284
Painters and Paintings 285
the artistic movement which the benefactions
of the emperor-king made possible'. Theodore 's
name is mentioned as a master of the guild as
early as 1348 and again in 1367, which indicates
that the period of his artistic activity must have
been relatively long. Two of his paintings —
St. Augustine and St. Ambrose — are in the
national gallery at Vienna; two figures of
saints in the library of the university of
Prague, and one hundred and twenty-five half
length figures of saints in the castle at Karluv
Tyn.
Associated with Theodore in the guUd of
artists were — besides painters — sculptors, ar-
chitects, wood-carvers, and goldsmiths. Among
the painters were Kunz, Nicholas Wurmser,
and Thomas of Modena, the latter sometimes
called Tommasso Baresino. Kunz is repre-
sented in the castle at Karluv Tyn by the paint-
ings portraying the life of Charles IV (in the
chapel of Our Lady). These are characterized
by marked gracefulness of action of the numer-
ous persons portrayed.
Nicholas Wurmser also assisted in the deco-
ration of the castle, in the series dealing with
St. Vaclav and Ludmila and the family tree
of the house of Luxemburg. Both unfortu-
286 Bohemia and the Cechs
nately perished in 1597, but they had been cop-
ied, and the manuscript containing these copies
is preserved in the royal library at Vienna.
Thomas of Modena seems to have resided in
Prague for many years, probably during most
of the reign of Charles. A fragment of an altar
piece by him is preserved in the church of Our
Lady at Karluv Tyn and a Madonna and Child
with St. Vaclav and St. Palmasius at Vienna.
Some of his works may also be seen in the
chapter house of the Dominicans at Treviso.
The successors of Charles, however, did not
share his ambitions; and the religious wars
that followed during the fifteenth and sixteenth
centuries completely effaced all artistic activ-
ities in the kingdom and destroyed many of the
creations of the golden age of King Charles.
The system of centralization, inaugurated by
Maria Theresa in the eighteenth century, and
the Germanization policy adopted by her son
Joseph II completed the ruin of the national
art. In his desire to efface all the distinctive
characters of the nationalities which were
united under his sceptre, Joseph sold at auc-
tion most of the art works that had survived
the Hussite and Thirty Years' Wars, such as
pictures, sculpture, and the objects of religious
Painters and Paintings 287
art taken from the churches and the suppressed,
monasteries. The royal palace at Prague was
stripped of all its art treasures and turned into
a military barrack.
At the end of the eighteenth century there
were at Prague three or four painters who had
preserved, "as by a miracle," notes Henri
Hantich,^ the ancient Bohemian traditions of
their art; but as patrons were rare they were
forced to earn their living by giving lessons
in drawing in the families of the nobility and
the well-to-do citizens. By these means, how-
ever, they aroused an interest in the revival
of art and to this end they founded in 1792 —
chiefly by the aid of the Bohemian noblemen —
the Patriotic Society of the Friends of Art, out
of which grew a gallery and a school of paint-
ing. But the artists at the head of the move-
ment were men of very modest attainments and
they were content to follow the tendencies —
which came to them second hand through Vi-
enna — of the classical school.
The first director of the new academy of
Prague was Joseph Bergler, who held the post
for more than twenty years. He merely imi-
' L'art tchfique au XIXe sifecle. By Henri Hantich. Paris
and Prague, n. d.
288 Bohemia and the Cechs
tated the school of Bologna, and the artists
trained under him were for the most part
draftsmen rather than painters. Their work
lacked vitality and sincerity. When the books
of the romantic writers, who sought to revive
certain mediaeval forms and methods in oppo-
sition to the so-called classical style, penetrated
Bohemia, a new impulse was given to the art
movement of the capital, and opposition to
Bergler and his partisan academics developed.
Ultimately through the efforts of Count Fran-
cis Thun, the chief supporter of the academy,
Bergler was superseded by Christian Euben.
He brought from Munich larger artistic view-
points, dexterity in the composition of histor-
ical scenes, and an excellence of technique which
was rare at that time. This was the period
when the romantic movement influenced every
department of creative art ; and in Bohemia, as
elsewhere in Europe, the imagination of lit-
erary workers, musicians, and statesmen was
quite as much stirred as was that of the paint-
ers.
There was no differentiation between Ger-
mans and Cechs during the early stages of the
art development of Bohemia. That rivalry
which has become such a marked feature in
Painters and Paintings 289
every department of culture did not exist be-,
fore the revolution of 1848. The political initi-
ative taken at that time by the Svornost re-
sulted in the formation of a society of the fine
arts (Krasoumna Jednota) that was distinct-
ively Bohemian and national in character. The
purpose of the new society was the organization
of annual art exhibits, the acquisition of objects
of art, and the lithographic reproduction of
notable paintings. The new society directed
the attention of its members to the study of
Bohemian history and contemporary life which
movement bore precious fruits during subse-
quent generations in the distinguished group
of historical and genre painters.
The political and literary activity of the re-
juvenated nation reacted most favourably on
the new art movement, and another society of
artists (TJmelecka Beseda) was organized with
the object of instituting at Prague an annual
exposition of the chief productions of Bohe-
mian and foreign artists, after the fashion of
the salon in Paris. As an immediate result of
these activities Bohemia produced an astonish-
ing number of painters who took high rank in
their art, artists of the rare skill and good taste
of such men as Hellich, Manes, Javurek, Cer-
290 Bohemia and the Cechs
mak, Jedlicka, Zenisek, Ales, Pinkas, Brozik,
Purkyne and Svoboda.
Among the artists who belong to the early-
part of the fast century may be named Anton
Manes, his son Guido and his daughter Amelia,
and his brother Vaclav. Josef Manes, one of
the great Bohemian painters, was also a son
of Anton, but his work belongs to a later period.
Anton Manes (1784-1843) was educated at the
academy of Prague under Karel Postel, and in
1836 he became a professor in that institution.
He was engaged chiefly in landscapes, and his
two best pieces — " Evening chimes in a vil-
lage " and " Mountain landscape with a river "
— may be seen in the national gallery at
Prague. His daughter Amelia was also an
able landscape painter. Guido Manes (1829-
1880) studied at Prague under Ruben and his
best work consisted of battle scenes and genre
pieces. Some of his humourous scenes from-
daily life are full of vigour. His best known
compositions are " Capture of Andreas Ho-
fer," "Bliicher's fall at Ligny," "A land-
lord in trouble," and " The first walk to
school."
The artists who were the product of the acad-
emy of Prague, and who mark the transition
Painters and Paintings 291
from the old to the new school of Bohemian
painters, were Hellich, Lhota, Frantisek Cer-
mak, Javurek, Maixner, Karel Svoboda, and
Josef Manes. They were for the most part his-
torical painters, and they felt keenly the influ-
ence of the romantic movement and shared to
a marked degree the national aspirations of
their countrymen.
Hellich was the first president of the new
Bohemian society of fine arts (Krasounma Jed-
no ta). He was a passionate romanticist and
was one of the first to break with the traditions
of the classical school. His best historical sub-
jects are " John 2izka " and " George of Pode-
brad," and his well-known mythical themes
include " Cech," " Krok," and " Libusa."
Lhota surpassed Hellich in power of technical
execution, but his paintings lack the warmth
that the older artist infused into his composi-
tions. Among Lhota 's best historical paintings
are " Otakar II converting the Lithuanians,"
" Vaclav IV in prison," " Catherine of Swe-
den," and" Charles IV."
Frantisek Cermak, who shared the romantic
creed of his colleagues, gave more of his time
to genre compositions than to historical pieces.
Three of his well-known paintings are " The
292 Bohemia and the Cechs
pillage of a convent," " Assassination of Wald-
stein," and " Ferdinand II tearing up the Let-
ter of Majesty." Karel Javurek began his
studies at Vienna, but continued them at
Prague, and later studied for a period at Ant-
werp. Like Hellieh he was keenly influenced
by the ardour of the young patriots, and he
gave his best efforts to tragic scenes in the
history of Bohemia, such as " Frederick
of Palatinate receiving the news of the
defeat of the Protestants at the battle of
White Mountain," " Svatopluk massacring
the Vrsovici," and " Budovec condemned to
death."
Karel Svoboda (1823-1870) was a historical
painter who had studied at the academy of
Prague under Euben, and later spent some
years in the study of the manners and customs
of the southern Slavs. He was a diligent artist
and many creditable pieces by him may be seen
in Bohemia and Austria. Among his historical
subjects are " Joseph II in Prague," " Coro-
nation of Albert II," " The citizens of Milan
paying homage to Frederick Barbarossa,"
' ' The foundation of the university of Prague, ' '
" Death of St. Vaclav " (in the Belvedere),
and " Eetreat of Charles V " (in the gallery
Painters and Paintings 293
at Vienna). Svoboda also executed a cycle of
ten pictures from Iphigenia in Tauris for the
loggia of the Vienna opera house.
Pierre Maixner followed more closely the
traditions of the classical school in his treat-
ment of historical subjects than his colleagues,
although he was an excellent colourist and his
paintings have been generally popular. His
most considerable works are " John of Lux-
emburg entering Prague," " Expulsion of the
Bohemian Protestants after the Thirty Years'
War," and " Oldfich and the beautiful Bo-
zena. ' '
Josef Manes (1821-1871), the greatest his-
torical and genre painter of his age and coun-
try, was unappreciated and unrecognized in his
day, and only since his death have his country-
men begun to estimate his work at its real merit.
He had the misfortune to have been fifty years
ahead of his generation, and was saddened all
his life by the lack of appreciation which his
work so justly merited. He studied at Prague
and Munich, where he came under the influence
of the German romantic movement. For some
years he busied himself with painting castles,
colonnades in ruin, moon-lit manors, and pa-
thetic scenes generally. But a season in Mora-
294 Bohemia and the Cechs
via brought him in touch with the vigorous and
picturesque life of the Hanaks and Horaks
and thenceforth their customs, festivals, and
doings became his chief artistic concern. His
pictures of the peasants were not mere photo-
graphs of hard life in Moravia, but the ideal-
izations of the poet-painter; for this Manes
was in a large measure. Among his well-
known works are " Albrecht Diirer on his jour-
ney to Italy," " St. John of Nepomuk," and
" Petrarch seeing Laura in Santa Agata at
Avignon. ' ' Of exceptional merit are his cycles
— "The seasons," "Music," and "Song."
The former were executed for the Town Hall
of Prague.
No Bohemian artist has more profoundly in-
fluenced the younger generation of Cech paint-
ers than Josef Manes. In 1888 a group of
thirty progressive young Bohemian artists, as
a protest against the academic spirit which had
failed to appreciate Manes, organized a society
in opposition to the Umeleckd Beseda, which
represented the academics. The insurgents
named the new organization " Manes." Their
expositions, it may be noted, have exceeded in
interest those of the older society of fine arts.
Since 1895 the Manes society has published a
Painters and Paintings 295
highly creditable art review, Volne 8mery
(Modern Tendencies).
Among the contemporaries of Manes may be
named Trenkwald, Scheiwel, Sequens, Tulka,
and Jedlicka. Trenkwald was professor in the
academy of Prague, and a good teacher as well
as a productive artist. His best-known com-
position is " Legends of the saints." Schei-
wel's allegorical paintings in the Thun palace
represent him at his best. Sequens was greatly
influenced by the frescoes of the early Italians,
which he made the groundwork of his compo-
sitions. The five compositions of Tulka in the
loggia of the Bohemian National Theatre at
Prague represent the high water mark of his
art. Jedlicka had both the temperament and
the skill of Manes, but his work does not
approximate that of the great painter. His
" Seven deeds of mercy," however, attests his
fine comprehension of human misery.
The two painters who deserve to be men-
tioned in the same connection with Josef Manes,
and who have endeavoured to perpetuate his
traditions, are 2enisek and Ales. Frantisek
2enisek (born in 1849) has covered a relatively
wide gamut of subjects — decorative art, alle-
gorical conceptions, legendary scenes, histor-
296 Bohemia and the Cechs
ical paintings, and fantastic compositions, in
all of which, he has aimed, as did Manes, to
ennoble and embellish his subjects. Among his
notable compositions are the " Muses " and
" Three epochs in Bohemian history " (in the
National Theatre at Prague), " Bozena," a
fine mythical figure; the " Holy night," and
" Bandits and animals," a series of illus-
trations of popular stories. His portrait of
Frantisek-Josef is generally regarded as an
exceptionally fine likeness of the emperor-
king.
Mikulas Ales (bom in 1852) represents in
a marked degree many of the art ideals of
Manes. His appreciation of all that is best in
the common people — among whom he passed
his youth — finds enthusiastic expression in his
art; and his portrayal of the picturesque fea-
tures of his native country, the achievements
of his ancestors, and the majestic seriousness
of the myth all suggest his affinity with Manes.
Among his works may be named his " Apothe-
sis of St. Vaclav," " Prague in the days of
its glory and its humility," and " The or-
phan." Jointly with 2enisek, he executed
some of the mural paintings in the foyer of
the National Theatre at Prague, including
Painters and Paintings 297
" Myths," " National poetry," " History,"
and " Song."
Most of the painters already enumerated
came under German influence, in so far as they
were influenced by foreign masters, but France
henceforth plays the most important role in
the art instruction of Bohemia. Vienna, Mu-
nich, Dresden, and Dusseldorf no longer at-
tract the Cech cadets, but Paris is the load-
stone that determiaes the modern tendencies of
Bohemian pictorial art. Cermak, Pinkas, and
Javurek were the pioneers of this new tendency.
Jaroslav Cermak (1831-1878) had studied at
Prague and Antwerp before beginning his stud-
ies in Paris. Aside from being a distinguished
historical and genre painter, he was especially
successful in the portraiture of children. His
studies in Belgium had given him a keen sense
of appreciation of the value of perfection in
technique, and to this he added a fine taste
and skill in the use of colours. His first his-
torical pieces, which show the influence of the
prevalent Prague academics, were " The Bohe-
mian emigrants " and " Otakar II before the
battle of Marchfeld." Among his historical
subjects that show the influence of his resi-
dence in Paris are " The counter-reformation,"
298 Bohemia and the Cechs
" Prokop the Great before Nuremburg,"
* * Frederick the Winterking receiving the news
of the battle of White Mountain," and " De-
fence of a ]^ss by the Taborites. ' ' Among his
genre pieces are " 2izka and Prokop reading
the Bible," "The begging court poet," and
" The praying girl." He passed some years in
the southern Slavic countries, and some of his
notable genre pieces were of life in Herzego-
vina, Montenegro, and Dalmatia, such as ' ' The
Montenegrin bard and his daughter," " The
wounded Montenegrin," and " Eeturn to the
village." All his genre paintings are marked
by a strong individuality; and, while one rec-
ognizes them as true interpretations of life,
they do not give the impression of being mere
copies.
S. Pinkas (1827-1901) studied with Couture
in Paris, and he exhibited regularly at the
French salons from 1860 to 1870. Several of
his pictures of hunting dogs were sold in Amer-
ica. Most of his paintings give evidence of
artistry of a high order, but during his long
life he produced a comparatively small number
of compositions. Frantisek Kryspin (1841-
1867) displayed during his brief career un-
usual talent for historical subjects. His im-
VACLAV BROZIK.
Painters and Paintings 299
portant works are " Nero beholding the burn-
ing of Eome," " Zbyhon and his unfaithful
lover," and " The death of Socrates," the lat-
' ter unfinished.
Vaclav Brozik (1851-1901) is certainly one
of Bohemia's most distinguished historical
painters. In brilliancy of form, harmony of
colours, and individuality of his virtuosity, he
takes high rank among modern European ar-
tists. He studied first at Prague and Dresden,
and later at Paris, where he resided continu-
ously from 1876 to 1893. His first great success
was a historical painting, " The embassy of
King Ladislav of Bohemia to the court of King
Charles VII of France, ' ' which is owned by the
National Gallery at Berlin. Two of his best-
known historical works are in the Town Hall
at Prague — ' ' The condemnation of John Hus
by the council of Constance " and " The elec-
tion of George of Podebrad." Among other
historical and genre pieces • are ' ' Farewell of
Otakar II, " " Ferdinand I among his artists, ' '
" Reading the Bible " (purchased by the late
M. K. Jessup, of New York), and " The goose
girl " (his last work not quite completed). In
his later years he painted portraits with great
success.
300 Bohemia and the Cechs
Brief mention must be made of E. Liska
(1852-1902), a pupil of Max, whose " Hagar
and Ismael " and " Christ on the Mount of
Olivet " are works of great distinction; A.
Liebscher (born 1857) whose " 2izka storming
Kutna Hora " is a historical work of consid-
erable merit ; Ferdinand Velc (born 1864) who
painted " The death of St. Vaclav " and sev-
eral religious pieces; E. Dite, who painted
" St. John of Nepomuk " and some religious
subjects, and L. Lerch, J. de Skramlik, Charles
Pavlik, and Jan Grretsch.
Most of the modern Bohemian allegorical
painters — Hynais, Mucha, Masek, Schwaiger,
Pirner, Schikaneder, Jenewein and Holarek —
were also trained in whole or part in the art
schools of France. A. Hynais (born 1854) is
perhaps the most brilliant of the lyric palette
artists. Among his best creations are the cur-
tain of the Bohemian National Theatre at
Prague, " The judgment of Paris," and " The
prize." A. Mucha (born 1860) has become by
long residence quite as much a Frenchman and
American as he is Bohemian. His posters, it
will be recalled, won for him early renown. He
has displayed extraordinary dexterity in draw-
ing and his illustrations of books are of great
Painters and Paintings 30i
merit. Karel Masek (born 1865), besides a
number of allegorical paintings, has made some
interesting studies of the peasants in the region
of Domazlice. H. Schwaiger (born 1854) has
some highly original work ia " The spirit of
the mountain " and " The wandering Jew."
Max Pirner (born 1854) has pictured the pas-
sions of the human heart in his cycle of thir-
teen pieces entitled " The demon of love." J.
Schlikaneder (born 1854) has three gruesome
but highly interesting pieces in " The return
from the funeral," " The feast of death," and
" A suicide." F. Jenewein (born 1857) has
several large historical cartoons, such as ' ' Ea-
koczy," " Prokop the Great," and " The battle
of Lipany." E. Holarek (born 1867) is a
moralist in his line of historical painting.
Among his pieces are " The Bulgarian cap-
tive," " The catechism," " Dreams," and
" The night."
Bohemia has produced a large number of
artists " of the every-day life and manners "
of the Cech people. The older genre painters
include Dvorak, Kroupa, Purkyne, Zvefina,
Melka, and Gareis. Antonin Dvorak (1820-
1881) — not to be confused with the music com-
poser of the same name — was the painter of
302 Bohemia and the Cechs
the rustic life in the village of Litomysl. He
has also several historical pieces, such as " Eu-
dolph II " and " Conscripts of the army of
Waldstein." J. Kroupa's paintings, such as
the ' ' Plzen wedding, ' ' are full of life and move-
ment. Karel Purkyne (1834-1869) has brought
out the humourous side of the life of the com-
mon people, as has A. Gareis. F. Zvefina
and V. Melka have rendered valuable service
to ethnography by their careful paintings
of the peasants of Dalmatia and Transyl-
vania.
Among the younger artists, the list of genre
painters is a very long one, and with a consid-
erable amount of meritorious work to the credit
of each. One notes in the paintings of the
younger artists a prevailing note of humour.
Among the younger men who are doing credit-
able work may be named A. Bartonek, A. Ne-
mejc, J. Traska, Frantisek Slaby, Jaroslav
Spilar, F. Doubek, J. Douba, J. Vesin, J. tTprka,
V. Sochor, L. Marold, Jan Dedina and V.
Oliva.
While the list of Bohemian landscape paint-
ers is a long one, it can scarcely be said
to be as distinguished as is that already dis-
cussed. J. Navratil (1798-1865), the nestor of
Painters and Paintings 303
Bohemian landscape painters, was an idealist
and always represented nature much " more
beautiful than she was." Edward Herold
(1820-1895) united historical with landscape
painting and selected chiefly old castles,
churches, and monasteries as his subjects.
Bedfich Havraneh (born 1821) was a pupil of
the elder Manes. He was a faithful observer
of nature, and his " Autumn," " Hebrew ceme-
tery in Prague, ' ' and the ' ' Valley of St. Ivan ' '
indicate this fidelity. Frantisek Wachsmann
(1820-1897) united with landscape painting ar-
chitecture, the interior decoration of churches,
and lithography. Ludvik Bubak (1824-1870)
has reproduced on canvas some of the most
romantic spots in Bohemia. J. Kautsky (born
1827) has a series of interesting pictures of
the Bohemian Forest and the Giant moun-
tains.
A. Brechler (1826-1891) painted almost ex-
clusively mountains, hills, and ravines. There
is something distinctly idyllic about the choice
bits of landscape by A. Kosarek (1829-1859).
Josef UUik (1838-1881) combined the interest
of the archaeologist with that of the artist in
his paintings of castles. A. "Waldhauser (born
1835) was one of the best colourists among the
304 Bohemia and the Cechs
landscape painters of Ms day. J. Novopacky
(born 1831) was also a colourist of exceptional
merit. Julius Mafak (1835-1899) attained dis-
tinction both in landscape painting and etching.
Among his well-known pieces are " Moon-
rise," " Forest solitude," " View in Levant
valley," and " Congress of storks under the
elms."
Some interesting bits of old Prague may be
found in the paintings of B. Kniipfer (born
1847). Antonin Chittussi (1848-1891) combined
landscape and historical painting. Karel Lieb-
scher (born 1851) has made some interesting
sketches of Mlazovice. Another artist who has
tried to preserve in oils " Prague as it was "
is Vaclav Jansa (born in 1859). V. Ead-
minsky (born 1869) has painted some delicate
impressionistic landscapes.
Two women landscape painters are Miss Z.
Braunerova (born 1862) and Miss H. Emin-
grova. Miss Braunerova studied with Cazin,
and she has produced some charming bits from
the old towns. Among other landscape paint-
ers of merit are Schusser, Wiesner, Homolac,
Kalvoda, Lebeda, Engelmiiller, Wiehl, Bran-
deis, Safarovic, Vacha, Svoboda, Ondrusek,
Vlcek and Hercik.
Painters and Paintings 305
Among the young artists of the present day
Max Svabinsky takes high rank both as a
painter and an etcher. His " St. Vaclav bless-
ing the people " is his best religious piece
and several of his admired portraits are those
of Ladislav Eieger, the leader of the' Old Cech
party, and Svatopluk Cech, the author. Some
of the poetic sentiments of J. Preisler —
' * Zephyrs ' ' and ' ' Springtime ' ' — indicate the
fine conceptions of this young painter. S. Hu-
decek is the interpreter of silence, as in "A
summer evening ' ' and ' ' Night. ' ' L. Novak has
given some charming pictorial interpretations
of Bohemian legends and folk-songs. A. Slav-
icek has a genius for portraying the charm of
Bohemian rural districts. Frantisek Simon has
some good marine pieces and etchings to his
credit.
In addition to these, there are more than
twenty other young Bohemian painters who
have given considerable promise of distinc-
tion, such as Urban, Klusacek, Kavan, Kupka,
Jiranek, 2upansky, Scheiner, Kasparek, Simu-
nek, Dvorak, Kuba, Nadherny, Stretti, Pa-
nuska, Bem, Bottinger, and Oliva. The Mod-
ern Gallery of the Kingdom of Bohemia, which
was opened at Prague in 1902, is making a col-
306 Bohemia and the Cechs
lection of the best work of the younger paint-
ers, the works of the older artists being dis-
played at thp Rudolphinum.^
' For fuller accounts of the development of painting in Bo-
hemia see: Charles Hantich's L'art tchfeque aux XIXe sifecle
(Paris and Prague, n. d.); Karel B. Midi's Pamdtnik na oslavu
padesdtiletSho panovnioh6ho jubilea J. V. cisarfi FrantiSka
Josefa I (Prague, 1898); Otakar Hostinsk^'s Sto let price
(Prague, 1895); FrantiSek X. Harlas' Doha a IJmgni (Prague,
1902), and Karel B. Midi's Um6ni vfiera a dnes (Prague, 1904).
CHAPTER XV
SCTJLPTUKE AND AECHITECTTJEE
Few remnants of Gothic sculpture — Absence of monuments
to great spiritual heroes in Bohemia — Inartistic religious
effigies — Statue of Charles IV — ■ Modern Bohemian sculp-
tors — Vdclav Lev^ — Josef Myslbek — Ludivik Simek —
Seidan, SeeUng, Popp, Kafka, and Mauder — Stanislas Su-
charda and the Palack^ monument — L. Saloun and the
monument of John Hus — Minor sculptors — Bohemian
mediaeval architecture — Architectural view from the Bel-
vedere — St. Vitus cathedral — ■ The abbey of St. George —
The Charles bridge — The old Town Hall — The T^n church
— Palaces at Prague — Architectural interests at Kutn^
Hora — Other Bohemian towns — Beginning of the modern
architectural movement — Some of the modern architects
— Hdvka, Zitek, Schultz, and Mocker.
To except the equestrian statue of St. George
in the Hradeany square in Prague, which be-
longs to the Gothic period, most of the statuary
of Bohemia is of recent origin. One notices in
all the towns of the kingdom a dearth of monu-
ments to the great national heroes ; and it may
be hoped that the new school of sculpture, rep-
resented by such promising artists as Myslbek,
Simek, Seidan, Mauder, Sucharda, Saloun, and
Kloucek, will remedy this defect. The country
is literally punctuated with statues of madon-
307
SOS Bohemia and the Cechs
nas and the saints, and they usually occupy the
most favourable places in the public squares;
but most of them, judged by artistic standards,
are veritabfe eye-sores; and one marvels that
a people so instinctively artistic as the Bohe-
mians tolerate their presence. They belong for
the most part to the period of decadent Jesuit
sculpture; but their tolerance to-day is a re-
flection on the good taste of the Bohemian na-
tion.
On the other hand, the great spiritual lead-
ers and patriots of the country — John Hus,
Komensky, John 2izka, Karel Havlicek, Pa-
lacky, to name at random a few — are practi-
cally unrepresented. Even Prague, the capital
of the country, is not worthily represented by
large numbers of monuments of the spiritual
leaders of the kingdom. Professor Sucharda,
it is true, is at work on a great monument to
Palaeky which, when completed, will reflect
credit on both the city and the sculptor; and
Saloun has in preparation a worthy monument
to Master John Hus, but there is little likeli-
hood that it will be well placed. It should have
the position in Velke namesti now taken by an
indifferent statue of the Madonna; but there
is not much hope that the mediocre religious
Sculpture and Architecture 309
monument will be removed to make room for
SaloTin 's more worthy artistic product.
What is true of Prague is true of most of the
provincial towns of the kingdom, with the lone
exception of the little town of Jicin. Eeligious
monuments by the score may be found every-
where, but they are ugly in the extreme, and one
is constantly surprised to meet with such ap-
parent parodies on sculpture in a country whose
current art history is as creditable as that of
Bohemia. Jicm, a town of great historic in-
terest in northern Bohemia, was the first in the
kingdom to erect a monument in honour of
Master John Hus. It also has a monument to
Komensky, but both this and the Hus monu-
ment are badly placed. It has, however, a fine
monument to the memory of the national pa-
triot, Karel Havlicek, and it is excellently
placed at the town-end of the fine linden drive-
way. All honour to the town of Jicin! The
regret is that so much cannot be said for the
metropolis of the country and the larger towns
of the kingdom.
Besides the projected monuments of Hus and
Palacky, mentioned above, there is in Prague
a rather good statue of Charles IV which was
erected in 1848 in connection with the celebra-
310 Bohemia and the 6echs
tion of the five hundredth anniversary of the
foundation of the university. It was designed
by Hahnel of Dresden and Burgschmidt of
Nuremburg. There is also a monument erected
in 1864 to commemorate the participation of
the students in the defence of the city during
the Thirty Years' War, that was designed by
Emmanuel Max. Most of the statues of the
saints on the Charles bridge were conceived in
the ornate and insipid baroque style. Other
notable statues at Prague will be mentioned in
the brief statement of Bohemian sculptors that
follows and ia the chapters descriptive of the
city of Prague.
Modern Bohemian sculpture begins with Va-
clav Levy (1820-1870). He came under the in-
fluence of the romantic movement and he gave
patriotic expression to that movement in some
of his productions of legendary and historic
characters. Among his best works are * ' Adam
and Eve " and Frantisek- Josef, both of which
were produced during his sojourn in Rome;
" The Madonna on the throne," a magnificent
marble statue which he executed for the church
of Diakovar; " Saint Elizabeth," which he
made for the late empress of Austria-Hungary,
and statues of Saiats Cyril and Methodus, the
Sculpture and Architecture 311
apostles who introduced Christianity into Mo-
ravia and Bohemia from the Greek empire.
Levy's pupil, Josef Myslbek (born 1848) has
outdistanced his master in both the conception '
and the execution of his work. His sculptures
are " born in an enthusiastic love for his coun-
try," for he is a worthy son of the Bohemian
people, as well as a sculptor of the first rank.
He has been greatly influenced by the mythical
heroes of Josef Manes. His earliest notable
work was " Drama and the opera " which was
completed when he was twenty-one years old.
This was followed by " The triumphal entry
of Zaboj and Slavoj." The four groups of fig-
ures which he executed for the Palacky bridge
indicate a marked advance in his art. His po-
etic conception of the bard Lumir gave him
recognized rank as one of the first sculptors of
his day. The small plaster model of his St.
Vaclav is admirably conceived. Some of his
busts are exceptionally fine works, such as Kol-
lar, Palacky, Smetana, and Frantisek Thun.
Ludvik Simek (1837-1886), a pupil of Em-
manuel Max and Widemann, wavered all his
life between the classical traditions and those
of realism. Among his best statues are those
of Albert of Waldstein, George of Podebrad,
312 Bohemia and the Cechs
St. Vaclav, and Cyril and Methodus. His most
considerable work is the Jungmann monument
in Prague. A. Wagner (1834-1895) was a pro-
lific sculptor whose best works are the three
heroic representations of Bohemia, Moravia,
and Silesia in the Bohemian National Museum.
He also has two vigorous allegorical pieces —
"Africa" and "Asia" — in the gallery at
Vienna.
T. Seidan (1830-1890) has produced some
highly interesting genre bas-reliefs — as " The
Grandmother" from Nemcova's novel — and
fecellent statues of Komensky, Smetana, and
Fiigner. G. Schnirch (1845-1902) is repre-
sented in the Bohemian National Theatre by an
allegorical group in the tympanon. His stat-
ues of Hus, Tyrs, 2izka, Halek, and Fiigner are
conceived and executed in the academic style;
but his equestrian statue of George of Podebrad
is a compromise between the older style and
modern realism. B. Seeling (born in 1850) is
an eclectic whose best work has been in the con-
ception and execution of sepulchral monuments.
The town halls at Pardubice, Kladno, and
Domazlice contain some exceptionally fine alle-
gorical decorative works by A. Popp (born
1850). V. Kafka (1850-1889) selected his sub-
STANI8LAV SUOHARDA.
Sculpture and Architecture 313
jects from poetry and history. His creations
include John 2izka, Prokop the Bald, and Jer-
mak, the Siberian explorer. The statue of Hav-
licek, the bust of J. Purkyne, and the monument
of Barak may be instanced as the most notable
works by J. Strachovsky (born 1850).
The decorative covering of the mausoleum at
the Vysehrad by J. Mauder (bom 1855), the
allegorical medallions and the vigorous busts
of Cech, Neruda, and Eieger by G. Amort (born
1864), the apothesis of work represented by
Frantisek Hergel (born 1860) itx " The moun-
tain farmer," the allegorical ornaments of the
fagade of the Bohemian National Museum by
L. Malina (born 1860), and the historical rep-
resentation of the Chods by Ludvik Wurzel
(born 1865) may be mentioned as noteworthy
examples of recent Bohemian sculpture.
Bohemia's two most distinguished sculptors
of the present moment are Sucharda and Sa-
loun. Stanislav Sucharda (born 1866) is un-
doubtedly a great master of the art of model-
ling the human figure. His genre group ' ' The
cradle," one of his earliest works, gave him a
recognized place among sculptors of the first
rank. A mother is represented crouching over
the cradle while the father is assisting to get
314 Bohemia and the Cechs
the little one to sleep with the vioUn. The same
poetic sentiment is expressed in " Saul " and
" Tresor," which illustrate two of the ballads
of Jaromlr* Erben. Among Sucharda's more
comprehensive works may be named the beau-
tiful allegorical representations of Turnov and
Litomerice, two Bohemian towns; the bas-re-
liefs " Danger," " Protection," St. Vaclav,
and a number of charming heads of children.
His masterpiece, however, is the grand monu-
ment to Frantisek Palacky which he is execut-
ing for Prague. The allegorical figures which
are to surround the great Bohemian historian
are notable conceptions of the remarkable gen-
ius of Sueharda. This monument when com-
pleted will be one of the finest pieces of sculp-
ture in the city of Prague.
L. Saloun (born 1870) is doing for John Hus,
the greatest spiritual leader of Bohemian his-
tory, what Sueharda is executing for the per-
petuation of the kingdom's greatest historian
and statesman. Saloun's allegorical figure
" Prague " and his " Blacksmith resting " are
fine conceptions, and the same may be said of
his " Drama " and " Opera " which he exe-
cuted for the municipal theatre at Plzen.
Among his meritorious busts are those of 2e-
Sculpture and Architecture 315
rotin, Manes, Smetana, and Dvorak. But his
greatest piece of work is the monument in mem-
ory of the martyr of Constance.
Cernil, Magr, Royt, Schaff, Vosmik, Hosek,
Kafka, Stursa, Stransky, Kocian, and fiiha
have produced work of considerable promise.
Frantisek Bilek (born 1872) has produced three
notable pieces of statuary — "Golgotha,"
" The blind," and Christ — and Celda Kloucek
(born 1855) has produced some fine decorative
pieces, such as the entrance to the bank of Bo-
hemia (Zemska Banka) and the portals of a
number of private residences in Prague.
Bohemia is rich in specimens of mediaeval
architecture, in spite of the fact that most of
the Gothic buildings were destroyed during the
religious wars of the fifteenth and seventeenth
centuries. Some of the best specimens of the
older architectural styles, it is true, exist only
in mutilated fragments, and these often badly
patched up or modernized; nevertheless at
Prague, Kutna Hora, Jicin, Pardubice, Krum-
lov, Kolin and a few other places in the king-
dom one can get some conception of the former
magnificence of the mediaeval architecture of
the country.
From the Belvedere of Prague one gets the
316 Bohemia and the Cechs
most satisfying general vie-w of the architecture
of the capital. " The great rocky platform of
the Hradcany to the west with its immense pal-
ace capped by the graceful apse and the lofty
tower of the cathedral, together with the Eo-
manesque spires of the Benedictine abbey of
St. George, and the huge round tower of Dali-
borka with its grim associations rising sheer
out of the valley in the foreground. The great
river with its noble old bridge, and gothic tow-
ers in the centre, and the countless spires,
domes, and towers of the Old Town to the east,
the craggy rock of the Vysehrad to the south,
cannot fail to raise in the mind expectations
of a rich architectural treat. When, however,
one comes to examine the city more in detail,
disappointment is inevitable. The cathedral,
important and beautiful, is only the choir and
tower of what would — if completed — have
been a noble church, but at present it is but a
fragment, mutilated and injured. ' '
None of the Gothic churches in Europe —
Scotland possibly excepted — have suffered
more than those in Bohemia. The noble choir
of the cathedral of St. Vitus in Prague was
destroyed during the sixteenth century and re-
placed by the present bulb-shaped structure.
OLD TOWN TOWBB OF CHARLES BRIDGE.
Sculpture and Architecture 317
Most of the internal fittings, including the
stained glass, disappeared during the Hussite
wars. The aisles and chapels of the choir were
the work of a French architect, Matthias of
Arras, while the lofty clerestory, with its rich
profusion of tracery and flying buttresses, was
the work of Peter Arler of Gmiind. The walls
of the chapel of St. Vaclav — which form
the lower portion of an unfinished transept —
were covered externally with mosaics and in-
ternally with frescoes bordered with cut crys-
tals. The frescoes of the cathedral were by
the painters of the school of Prague mentioned
in the previous chapter.
The abbey of St. George near the cathedral
is a Romanesque building, originally erected in
the tenth century, but was destroyed by fire in
the twelfth century and soon entirely rebuilt.
It has, however, been considerably modernized.
The frescoes date from the thirteenth and four-
teenth centuries. Here St. Ludmila is buried.
The noble Charles bridge, which spans the
Vltava by sixteen arches, is one of the choice
bits of architecture in Prague. At either end
are graceful towers adorned with niches and
panelling, and the buttresses of the bridge are
further adorned with twenty-eight statues of
318 Bohemia and the Cechs
the saints, the bronze statue of St. John of
Nepomuck being in the middle of the bridge.
The old Town Hall, with its stately tower,
curious clock, and graceful chapel,' although
largely rebuilt during the last century, is in the
Gothic style of the original building. Near-by
is the Tyn church (which played such an im-
portant role during the moral revolution of
Bohemia) with its two picturesque western
spires. The vaulting internally has been mod-
ernized, but there is a fine bronze bas-relief
representing the resurrection over the south
door. The Karluv church, once a fine Gothic
edifice, has been greatly modernized externally.
It was planned by Peter Arler of Gmiind. The
nave consists of a great octagon unsupported
by pillars. The old thirteenth century syna-
gogue with its row of columns in the centre is
interesting; and many of the old houses of
Prague are built over vaulted arcades and con-
tain bits of graceful Gothic architecture.
Prague has a large number of stately palaces.
The great Hradcany palace has the largest
Gothic hall in existence, which has a rich Gothic
ceiling dating from the fifteenth century. The
renaissance part of the palace was completed
just before the outbreak of the Thirty Years'
Sculpture and Architecture 319
War. Other interesting palaces in Prague are
the Kinsky, the Clam Grallas, the Thun, the
Archbishop's, and the Waldstein, the latter
with a magnificent garden refectory.
Kutna Hora, which was frequently the resi-
dence of the Bohemian kings, has numerous
interesting architectural relics. The most im-
posing is the unfinished church of St. Barbara
on a rock overlooking the Vltava. It has a lofty
apse and chevet and a stately choir begun by
Peter Arler of Gmiind in 1380. Had it been
completed it would have been the largest church
in Bohemia and Austria. Plzen, Kolin, Jicin,
and other of the old towns of the kingdom also
have interesting specimens of mediaeval archi-
tecture. Some of the castles have beautifully
adorned chapels. That of Karluv Tyn is de-
scribed elsewhere in this work.
The recent architectural movement in Bohe-
mia began about eighty years ago. The orig-
inal Francis bridge (rebuilt in 1900) was com-
pleted in 1842. Shortly afterwards the rebuild-
ing and renovation of the old Town Hall in
Prague was begun, and in 1864 the institute of
technology established a course of architecture.
One of the first professional architects of this
period was J. Kranner (1801-1871) who had
320 Bohemia and the Cechs
charge of the restorations of the St. Vitus ca-
thedral. UUmann planned many of the best
buildings of this period, such as the Savings
Bank of 'Bohemia, the Lazansky palace, the
Bohemian Institute of Technology, and the
provisional national theatre. J. Niklas '(1817-
1877), the first professor of architecture in the
technological institute, constructed several mod-
ern Gothic churches, two synagogues, the Ger-
man theatre, and the Theatre in the Woods
(Novomestske divadlo). Two important struc-
tures by A. Barvitius (1823-1901) were the
basilica of St. Vaclav and the Sebek palace.
J. Hlavka (born 1831), after extended study
at home and abroad, has become one of thd first
architects of Bohemia. Among the buildings
in Prague that he has planned are the Arch-
bishop's palace, the Armenian church, the
Greek Orthodox convent, and the extended
group of buildings for hospital purposes known
as the Maternity. Hlavka is not only one of
the first architects of his day but he is also one
of the leading benefactors of his country. He
has founded numerous literary and artistic in-
stitutions and is often referred to as the An-
drew Carnegie of Bohemia. The Bohemian
National Theatre and the colonnade at Carls-
J. HLAVKA.
Sculpture and Architecture 321
bad (Karlovy Vary) are the principal works
of J. 2itek (born 1832). With the cooperation
of J. Schultz (born 1840) he also planned the
Kudolphinum, the national art gallery and
music hall. Schultz planned the present Na-
tional Bohemian Museum. Among the works
of J. Mocker (1835-1891) may be mentioned the
church of St. Ludmila at Vinohrady, St. Pro-
kop at 2izkov, and the restoration of St. Bar-
bara at Kutna Hora. Weyrich and Stech
planned the town halls at Kladno and Pardu-
bice, and they have erected several of the mod-
ern hotels in Prague. Other leading architects
of Bohemia are Schmoranz, Wiehl, Zeyer, Sti-
bral, Balsanek, Turek and Polivka. Many of
the recent private houses and villas in Bohe-
mia are interesting specimens of modern archi-
tectural art. Not only in the city of Prague but
in many of the smaller towns one meets with
an unusually large number of beautiful private
buildings.^
'■ For fuller accounts of the sculpture and architecture of
Bohemia see: Hantich's L'art tohfeque au XIXe sifecle (Paris
and Prague, n. d.); Hostinsk^'s Sto let prd,ce (Prague, 1895);
Harlas' Doha a Umgnl (Prague, 1902), and Md,drs UmSnl v6era a
dnes (Prague, 1904).
CHAPTER XVI
BOHEMIAN MUSIC AND COMPOSEBS
Music the best-known of the fine arts in foreign countries —
Its development during the mediaeval period — Contribu-
tions of John Hus and the reUgious reformers — Bohemian
hymnology — Effect of congregational singing in the ver-
nacular — Sacred music of the Bohemian Brethren — BflA
Hora and the decline of interest in church music — Folk-
songs and folk-dances — Chorals — Interest of the nobiKty
in music — Italian opera at Prague — First opera sung in
the Cech — Beginnings of the modern school of national
mxisic — Smetana and his labours — The contemporaries
of Smetana — Antonln Dvof d,k — His early training and
struggles — Tardy recognition of his work — Nature of his
compositions — His fund of melody — Fibich and the lyric
drama — His notable works — Kovaf ovic and Foerster —
Novd,k and Josef Suk — Nedbal and the other younger
composers — Writers on the philosophy, history, and aesthet-
ics of music — Otakar Hostmsk^ — Music schools in Bohe-
mia — Singing societies.
Bohemia's music is probably better known
tbronghoTit tbe world than any otter branch
of its fine arts, and this is largely due to the
superb creative Work of Smetana and Dvorak.
Not that the history of the music of the country
begins with these two great tone artists, but
because they spoke in such musical forms and
with such musical force that they at once ar-
rested the attention of the world. Tolstoy was
322
Bohemian Music and Composers 323
not the first great man of letters in Eussia, but
he was the first Eussian author to interest the
world in the literature of his country; and
this service Smetana and Dvorak have rendered
for Bohemia in the matter of national music.
We read in the chronicles of the early medi-
asval period that the Bohemians were much
given to singing and dancing, and we may infer
that the history of the music of the kingdom
begins with its earliest settlement, probably
before the commencement of the Christian era.
The fact that the earliest Christian church serv-
ices were in the vernacular, and that congre-
gational singing was a feature of the service,
would suggest the early development of the art
of song in the country. But we know very little
about its character before the time of Charles
IV (1346-1378). During the fourteenth and the
fifteenth centuries church music in Bohemia
was given a strong impulse. While John Hus
and the other reformers did not favour worldly
music, they were ardent advocates of hymns
and other forms of sacred song, and Bohemian
hymnology during this period attained a high
degree of perfection.
As many of the reformers, and particularly
the Taborites, were violently opposed to any
324 Bohemia and the Cechs
use of the Latin in the services of the church,
the composition of hymns in the vernacular was
encouraged.. The folk-dances and the secular
songs of the .common people, although de-
nounced by the most fanatical of the religious
sects, never lost their hold on the masses, and
they continued throughout the centuries to give
a certain unity to the music of the country. The
peasants, we are told, invariably sang at their
work, and after the church service on Sunday
they began dancing and often " kept it up with-
out cessation till early on the following morn-
ing." Such profound musical interest on the
part of the peasants explains the fact that so
late as the last century Dvorak found forty
different kinds of folk-dances. The best known
of the varied national rhythms are the polka,
the furiant, and. the dumka, which Dvorak
raised to symphonic rank.
Great progress was made in music during the
sixteenth century. The Bohemian Brethren, in
particular, were active in the organization of
choirs which developed part-music and abol-
ished the monotony of the one-part. They also
published in 1519 their first great collection of
hymns, which was at once translated into Ger-
man and became the model for hymnology in
Bohemian Music and Composers 325
Protestant countries. Singing societies were
organized, composed of groups of men who
were leading citizens. In this way church music
reached a high degree of development. Jan
Blahoslav (1524-1571), a member of the Bohe-
mian Brethren, and a noted musician of his
day, was the author of the first book on musical
theory published in Bohemia. But all this was
brought to an abrupt termination with the dis-
astrous results of Bila Hora. The Bohemian
Brethren were banished from the country and
most .of the prominent citizens were driven into
exile. During the seventeenth century attempts
were made to revive the singing societies of the
previous decade, but without results.
Folk-songs ^ and folk-dances persisted, how-
ever, among the peasants who were fixed to the
soil by serf-laws, and the national music was
thus preserved. But so far as there was any
musical development in the country during the
seventeenth and the eighteenth centuries it was
largely in the nature of importations from Grer-
many and other foreign countries. Eudolph II
' There are many standard collections of Bohemian folk
songs. A brief but representative volume with words and music
is Jan Maldt's Perly Cesk^ho zpgvu n^rodnlhu (Prague, n. d.).
The catalogues of the two great music publishing houses in
Prague — FrantBek A, Urbdnek and Mojmir Urblnek — con-
tain several such collections.
326 Bohemia and the Cechs
(1576-1612) was a great lover of tonal art and
maintained an orchestra at Ms court, and
Pragne at that time attracted a large number
of first-class musicians; but after the battle
of White Mountain, the centre of music was
transferred from Prague to Vienna. And, as
it was a part of the Jesuit scheme, in the recla-
mation of the country to the Eoman faith to
blot out the past, they did all in their power,
as Henri Hantich ^ has pointed out, not only to
destroy the hymn-books and religious songs,
but also to uproot all music that suggested the
Bohemian nationality.
The people were permitted, however, to par-
ticipate in the singing of approved chorals in
the religious service of the Eoman Catholic
church, and most of the towns of the kingdom
had small bands of semi-professional players
who performed at the grand mass on certain
festival days. These agencies, together with
the folk-songs and the folk-dances of the com-
mon people, prevented the complete annihila-
tion of the taste for music in Bohemia. Many
of the nobles of the country secured the serv-
ices of professional musicians to direct the
1 La musique tchfeque. By Henri Hantich. Paris and Prague,
n. d.
Bohemian Music and Composers 327
musical part of the service in their private
chapels. It will be recalled that Haydn served
for a period in this capacity. The Thun, the
Cernin, and the Fiirstenberg families were es-
pecially active in the development of musical
interest and skill, and during the eighteenth
century the most eminent Bohemian virtuosi
were either noblemen or performers connected
with the chapels of the nobility. Among such
may be named Jindfich Bieber and Frantisek
Benda, violinists ; Jan Neruda and Jan Stastny,
violincellists ; Ladislav Dusfk, Frantisek Dusek,
and Leopold Kozeluh, pianists; Jan Sticha,
cornetist, and Karel Czerny, pianist and the
author of an excellent method for the piano.
After Prague ceased to be the residence of
the Bohemian kings little opera was given at
the capital except during the brief royal visits
or at the special coronation fetes. After the
coronation of Charles VI (1723), opera was
given with more or less regularity, but chiefly
by Italian singers. Most of the earliest operas
were by Italian composers, but in 1748 the
works of Gluck were given with great success ;
and, with the opening of the state theatre in
1783, several of the operas of Mozart received
their first performance in Prague. The com-
328 Bohemia and the Cechs
poser, it will be remembered, lived for some
time with Frantisek Dusek, the distinguished
Bohemian pianist of that period. In 1813
Weber became the director of the state theatre
at Prague, and for three years he gave per-
formances not only of his own compositions but
also the operas of Rossini, Donizetti, Auber,
Meyerbeer, Mehul, and Boieldieu. Three im-
portant factors in the development of the music
ipf this period were (1) the organization in
1803 of a society to aid in providing concerts
at Prague, (2) the establishment in 1811 of a
national conservatory of music, and (3) the
foundation twenty years later of an organ
school.
The production of the first opera written in.
Ceeh in 1826 marks the beginning of the tran-
sition from German (and other foreign) music
to the Bohemian. The opera " Dratenik "
(The wire-worker) by Frantisek Skroup (1801-
1862) met with immediate favour and added to
the enthusiasm for the national movement which
a small group of patriots — chiefly literary
men — had begun to formulate. Skroup is the
composer of the pretty national melody " Kde
domov muj " (Where is my fatherland), which
is quoted in a previous chapter. At this period
Bohemian Music and Composers 329
Erben began the collection of the national
poetry and songs of the Bohemian people, and
by 1860 Martinovsky had harmonized more than
eight hundred of these popular melodies.
During the forties and fifties the concerts
and operas at Prague were greatly improved
and most of the best composers and performers
of Europe were represented. The visits of
Liszt, Berlioz, and Wagner were matters of
donsiderable importance. Berlioz organized in
connection with the conservatory of music and
the Saint Cecelia Society six grand concerts
during 1846 which produced tremendous enthu-
siasm. The same year Liszt fascinated the
Bohemian people, and shortly afterwards the
operas of Wagner — ' ' Rienzi, " " The flying
Dutchman," " Tannhauser," and " Lohen-
grin ' ' — deepened the interest already aroused.
The development of the distinctly Bohemian
school of music, which to-day takes foremost
rank among the music schools of the world,
dates back only fifty years. The facts already
mentioned explain the revival of musical inter-
est among all classes of society, but three events
in the early sixties made possible the emancipa-
tion of the Bohemians in musical matters and
led to the foundation of the present flourishing
330 Bohemia and the Cechs
school of national music. In 1862 the first dis-
tinctly Bohemian theatre (for drama and opera
in the national language) was established, and
this was ^cceeded in 1883 by the magnificent
Bohemian National Theatre which is described
elsewhere in this work. The organization of
a Bohemian society of fine arts' (Umelecka
Beseda) in 1863 focussed the attention of the
leading men of the nation on the possible devel-
opments in the creative arts. And in 1861 the
great Bohemian choral society, the Hlahol, was
organized. The first great tone-artist to unify
these diverse movements was Bedfich Sme-
tana (1824-1884). ^
Smetana studied with Proksch at Prague and
afterwards with Liszt, and he became an enthu-
siastic adherent of the Berlioz-Liszt-Wagner
school. In 1848 he married Katherine Kolar
and opened a music school at Prague. He was
called to Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1856 as con-
ductor of the Philharmonic Society and ten
years later he became conductor of the Bohe-
mian NationaF Theatre. This position he held
until 1874, when his loss of hearing compelled
him to give it up and devote his time exclu-
* For accounts of Smetana see: Wellek's Smetanas Leben
und Wirken (Prague, 1900) and Hostinsk^'s Bedfich Smetana
a jeho boj o moderni iSeskou hudbu (Prague, 1900) .
BEDHICH SMETANA.
Bohemian Music and Composers 331
sively to composition. Smetana was an ardent
patriot and all his operas appeared originally
in the Bohemian tongue. Among such composi-
tions are " Branibofi v Cechach " (The Bran-
denburger in Bohemia), " Dalibor," " Prodana
nevesta " (The bartered bride), " Dve vdovy "
(Two widows), " Hubicka " (The kiss), " Taj-
emstvi " (The secret), and " Libusa." His
best symphonic composition is " My father-
land," in three sections — Vysehrad, Vltava,
and Libusa. Three other symphonic composi-
tions are " Richard III," " The camps of
Waldstein," and " Haakon Jarl." He also
composed a quartet, numerous pieces for the
piano, and many dance compositions based
upon Bohemian folk-rhythms.
Among the contemporaries of Smetana may
be named Bendl, Rozkosny, Sebor, Blodak, and
Klicka. Karel Bendl (1838-1897) studied first
at Prague with Zvonaf and Blazek, and later
with Liszt. He was active in the organization
of choral societies in Bohemia, the most famous
of which was the Hlahol at Prague, which he
directed for many years. He produced many
large choral works, the most important being
" Death of the Hussites," " March of the Ta-
borites," and " The Calixtines," His opera
332 Bohemia and the Cechs
" Leila," based upon a peasant romance, was
not of great importance. Karel Sebor (born
1843) composed numerous symphonies and sev-
eral operas, among the latter being ' ' The Tem-
plars in Moravia," " The Hussite lover," and
" Drahomira." Josef E. Rozkosny (born 1833),
a pupil of Tomasek, produced several operas,
including " Stoja " and " Popelka " (Cinder-
ella), the latter based upon the poem of Otakar
Hostinsky. Vojtech Hfimaly (born 1842) was
many years an orchestral director at Gothen-
burg, Sweden, and at the Bohemian and Ger-
man theatres at Prague. He composed many
works, the best-known being the opera " The
enchanted prince." Vil. Blodak (1834-1874)
composed several operas, masses, quartets, and
pianoforte pieces. His best known opera is
" V studni " (In the well) and " Zidek." Josef
Klicka (born 1855) has been a prolific com-
poser, one of his most popular compositions
being " Pfichod Cechu na fiip " (Arrival of the
Bohemians at the Sip Mountain).
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) i is the best-
' For fuller accounts of the life and the art of Dvofdk see:
Haddow's Studies in modern music (London, 1895), Finck's
Famous composers and their work (Boston, 1891), Mason's
From Grieg to Brahms (New York, 1902) and Masters in music
(Boston, 1904), and the late Professor Hostinsk^'s Antonfn
Dvofdk in the development of Bohemian music (in the Cech).
ANTONINI DVORAK.
Bohemian Music and Composers 333
known Bohemian composer in America, due not
only to the fact that he directed for some years
the National. Conservatory of Music in New
York and the dedication of a symphony and
quartet to the Americans, but also to his recog-
nized rank as one of the eight or ten greatest
creative tone artists of the nineteenth century.
He was distinctly a self-made man. Originally
a peasant, the son of a village butcher, he over-
came difficulties that to others would have
seemed insuperable.
From his earliest years he was profoundly
interested in music, and he took such good
advantage of the meagre musical opportunities
of his native village that at the age of fourteen
he had learned to play the piano, the organ, the
violin, and to sing, and had scored a polka for
the local band. The pecuniary limitations of
the family made it difficult to proceed at once
with the more advanced phases of his educa-
tion; but by the time he was sixteen he had
gotten together a very meagre sum which en-
abled him to enter the organ school at Prague ;
and it may be said with truth that he literally
" worked his way through " the music school
of the capital. He played the viola in a res-
taurant orchestra evenings and a church organ
334 Bohemia and the Cechs
on Sundays, which netted him nine dollars a
month !
" The only obvious advantage of this trying
period," remarks Daniel Gregory Mason,*
" was the intimate knowledge of instruments
it gave him. He lived, so to speak, cheek by
jowl with them, seeing what was written for
them, and learning how it sounded. His is no
book-knowledge of orchestration. On the other
hand, his extreme poverty, the limitations of
the school, and the lack of friends to lend him
scores or the use of a piano cut him off cruelly
from that equally essential part of education,
familiarity with classic masterpieces and the
traditions of academic learning."
He graduated from the organ school in 1860
and Smetana at once got him a position in the
orchestra of the Bohemian National Theatre.
This enabled him not only to hear and play
classical music, but to get the loan of scores
and aid and encouragement in composition.
" He forged ahead, and somehow, without
knowing where he was going or what he was
doing, made himself a master. ' ' His first opera,
" The king and the collier," was not a marked
success ; but in 1873 he became organist of the
1 Masters in miisic. By Daniel Gregory Mason. Boston, 1904.
Bohemian Music and Composers 335
St. Adalbert church in Prague at a comfortable
salary, which enabled him to marry. His next
composition, a patriotic hymn entitled " Heirs
of the White Mountain," met with general
favour.
Dvorak's Slavonic dances published in 1878
at once made his name known throughout the
musical world. ' ' Like Byron he awoke to find
himself famous, and to look back upon his times
of darkness and disappointment as a man looks
back upon his dreams." Thenceforth his fame
was secure, and there was great demand for his
compositions in Germany, England, and the
United States. Brahms secured for him a great
publisher, and the whole world suddenly awoke
to a sense of appreciation of a great genius.
The Austrian court decorated him; the uni-
versity of Cambridge gave him the honorary
degree of doctor of music; Prague gave him
the honorary degree of doctor of philosophy,
and he was made professor of music in the con-
servatory of Prague.
In 1892 he was called to New York as director
of the National Conservatory of Music (at a
salary of fifteen thousand dollars a year).
While in America he became keenly interested
in the negro melodies, and he used some of them
336 Bohemia and the Cechs
as thematic material in his ' ' New "World Sym-
phony " and his " New World String Quar-
tet." Three years later he returned to Prague
and resumed his teaching in the conservatory.
His sixtieth birthday was celebrated in 1901
by a mammoth musical festival; and again at
the Bohemian opera festival in 1904 great hon-
ours were conferred upon him. He died a few
weeks later of apoplexy.
" Whatever one may think of Dvorak the
musician," remarks Mr. Runciman,^ " it is im-
possible to feel anything but sympathy for
Dvorak the man. His early struggles to over-
come the attendant disadvantages of his peas-
ant birth; his unheard-of labours to acquire
a mastery of the technique of his art when body
and brain were exhausted by the work of earn-
ing his daily bread in a very humble capacity ;
his sickening years of waiting, not for popular
recognition merely, but for an opportunity of
showing that he had any gifts worthy of being
recognized, — these commend the sympathy of
all but those happy few who have found life a
most delicate feather-bed. Dvorak honestly
worked for all that came to him."
* Old scores and new readings. By J. F. Rundiinan. London,
1899.
Bohemian Music and Composers 337
And he was a prodigious worker. His operas
include " The king and the collier " (1874),
" Wanda " (1876), " Selma Sedlak " (1878),
" Tvrda Palice " (1881), " Dimitrij " (1882),
" The Jacobins " (1889), and " Eusalka'"
(1901). His two well-known secular cantatas
are " The spectre bride " (1885) and " The
American flag " (1895), and his sacred com-
positions the oratorio " St. Ludmila " (1886),
the requiem mass (1891), the Stabat Mater
(1883), and various hymns. He also composed
many songs, duets and other pieces, including
the " Gypsy songs " and " Moravian echoes."
His orchestral compositions include five sym-
phonies, three orchestral ballads and symphonic
poems, two sets of symphonic variations, five
overtures, the Slavonic dances and rhapsodies,
serenades, and smaller works. He also com-
posed concertos for piano, violin, and violin-
cello; string sextets, quintets, and quartets;
violin sonatas, and many piano pieces.
All his compositions have a high degree of
merit and his fund of melody was well-nigh
inexhaustible. Mr. Hadow^ remarks in this
connection: " His melody, taken by itself, is
'Studies in modern music. By W. H. Hadow. London.
1895.
338 Bohemia and the Cechs
often as simple and ingenious as a folk-song;
but in polyphony, in thematic development, in
all details of contrast and elaboration, his ideal
is to o]?ganize the rudimentary life, and to
advance it into a fuller and more adult ma-
turity. ' '
Zdenek Fibich (1850-1900) ranks with Dvorak
as one of the greatest national composers not
only of Bohemia but of modern times. Unfor-
tunately his works are little known outside of
his native country, and this is to be regretted,
for they are marked by greater individuality
than the works of Smetana and some of
the other better known Bohemian composers.
There is a subtle charm, a delicious and delicate
poetic strain, and a beauty of form in his com-
positions not often met with in such large
measure in lyric dramas. In the lyrical qual-
ity of his work he recalls Schumann, while on
the dramatic side one notes the influence of
"Wagner. The symphonic poems, the operas,
and the musical dramas all bear eloquent testi-
mony to the rare poetic quality of his tonal
muse.
Fibich was born at Sebofice, near Caslav, the
21st of December, 1850. He studied first at
the conservatory at Prague and later under
ZDENEK FIBICH.
Bohemian Music and Composers 339
Jadasshon and Moscheles at Leipzig; also a
brief period at Paris. He was assistant director
of the orchestra of the National Theatre at
Prague, but relinquished his post that he might
devote all his time to composition. His youth-
ful compositions — "In the mountains, " " The
favourites, ' ' and ' ' The vigil ' ' — have the rare
and delicate sentiment that characterized his
later lyrical dramas. His fondness for nature
is well exhibited in " Spring romances " and
" The wind's lover." The same qualities are
also apparent in his quintette for the piano, the
violin, the violincello, the French horn, and the
clarinette.
His symphonic poems are deservedly pop-
ular. One of the most beautiful is " Zaboj,
Slavoj, and Ludiek," based on one of the old
Bohemian legends. ' ' Toman and the nymph, ' '
" Springtime," and " Nightfall," are also
popular symphonic poems. Two overtures
which combine the historic with the poetic
aspects of the subjects are " A night at
Karluv Tyn " and " John Amos Komensky."
His superb opera " The bride of Messina "
is irreproachable in the harmony between the
words and the music and the energy of the
dramatic situations. And as much may be said
340 Bohemia and the Cechs
for his scoring of VrcMicky's mythical poem
of the Peloponnesian. The string quartets and
the songs of Fibich have the same lyrical qual-
ities that give charm to all his compositions.^
Karel Kovafovic (born 1862), who succeeded
F. A. Subert in 1900 as director of the Bohe-
mian National Theatre, is one of the leading
champions of the Cech music of to-day. His
two best-known operas are " Psohlavci " (The
heads of dogs), which deals with the revolt of
the peasants during the seventeenth century,
and " Na starem belidle " (Wash day), treat-
ing of peasant life in a humourous way some-
what after the manner of Smetana in " The
bartered bride." Josef B. Foerster (born
1859) has produced a wide range of composi-
tions which follow the best traditions of Sme-
tana and Fibich. His first opera was " Deb-
orah," and this was followed by two lyric
dramas, " Eve " and " Jessica." Among his
other compositions are two symphonic poems —
" Life " and " My youth " — a Stabat Mater,
two string quartets, and a large number of
vocal works. He has also an important orches-
tral work based on Cyrano de Bergerac.
' For accounts of the life and work of Fibich see: Ricfeter's
ZdenSk Fibich (Prague, 1900) and Borecky's D6jiny CeskS
Hudbry (Prague, 1906).
Bohemian Music and Composers 341
Vitezslav Novak (born 1870), a pupil of
Dvorak, has produced a number of important
orchestral suites, impassioned songs, sym-
phonic poems, and serenades for pianoforte.
Two of his ballads for orchestra and chorus
are " Tragic love " and " The unfortunate
war." His best symphonic pogm is " Eternal
languor," and his Slavonic dances for orches-
tra give the spirit of the Moravian peasants.
Josef Suk (born 1874), the second violinist of
the well-known Bohemian String Quartet, has
an honoured place among the younger compo-
sers. He studied the violin with Benewitz and
Sevcik and composition with Dvorak. Among
his best works are several pieces for string
quartet, dramatic overtures for complete or-
chestra (one based on Shakespeare's " Win-
ter's tale "), and a drama, " Eaduz and Mahu-
lena," based on the words of Zeyer. His sym-
phony " Azrael " is a tribute to his mas-
ter Antonm Dvorak and his Prague sym-
phony gives his conception of the legend of
Libusa.
Oskar Nedbal (born 1874), also known
through his connection with the famous Bohe-
mian String Quartet, has distinguished him-
self as a composer by his orchestral suites, such
342 Bohemia and the Cechs
as " Lazy Hans," " From fairy to fairy," and
several ballets. His musical accompaniments
to the dramatic representation of fairy tales
(without words) are the joy of young and old
alike. Karel Weiss (born 1864) has composed
several symphonic compositions and two operas
— "The Polish Jew" and "The twins."
Ludvik Celansky (born 1870), an orchestral
director, has an opera " Camille " which has
been weU received. Otakar Ostrcil is a
promising young composer who has produced
several ballads, symphonic poems, string
quartets, and a grand opera, " The death of
Vlasta."
Mention must be made in closing of some of
the leading writers of the history, philosophy,
and aesthetics of music, the chief music schools,
and the most important musical reviews.
Among writers on the history and aesthetics
of music the late Professor Otakar Hostinsky
(1847-1910) of the university of Prague was
one of the foremost. He was an intimate friend
of Smetana and Fibich and an ardent champion
of Bohemian nationalism in music. His works
include Development and present state of Bo-
hemian opera, Art and national music, Esthet-
ics of Herb art, Acoustics of nrnsic, and lives of
Bohemian Music and Composers 343
Blahoslav, Smetana, Dvorak, and Fibich. He
also wrote the books for Fibich 's tragic opera,
" The bride of Messina " and Eozkosny's fairy
opera " Cinderella."
Two Bohemians who were " at one " with
Brahms in their opposition to Wagner, Sme-
tana, and " the music of the future " were
Frantisek Pivoda (1824-1896) and Karel Knittl
(1853-1907) ; but both lived to see their mis-
take. Chvala, Novotny, Nejedly, Dolansky,
Branberger, and Malat should be named among
the leading writers about music. The two lead-
ing Bohemian musical reviews are the Dalibor,
edited by Mojmir Urbanek and Artus Eektorys,
and the Smetana, edited by Frantisek A. Urba-
nek and Jan Branberger.
The Conservatory of Music of Prague, estab-
lished 1811, ranks with the five or six first insti-
tutions of its kind in Europe. It has five hun-
dred students — a number from America and
England — and thirty professors. The present
director is Kaan z Albestu, and among well-
known professors are Josef Jiranek and Jind-
fich Kaan in pianoforte, Trnecek, Hornik,
Konig, Suchy, Spilka, Janousek, Lachner, and
Himer in composition, Mrs. Sklenafova-Maly
in dramatic art, and Stecker, Hoffmeister, and
344 Bohemia and the Cechs
Branberger in the history and philosophy of
music. The violin department has produced
such well-known virtuosi as Jan Kubelik, Ko-
cian, and IVfiss Hall. Among distinguished pro-
fessors in the national organ school in recent
times may be named Skuhersky, Foerster,
Vinaf , Kfizkovsky, and Nesvera.
There are numerous choral societies in
Prague and the provincial towns. Attention
has already been called to the Hlahol, the larg-
est and oldest. Two other well-known singing
societies are the Slavoj at Karlin and the Lumfr
at Smichov. There is also at Prague one of
the best philharmonic societies in Europe,
which gives exclusively symphonic composi-
tions, organizations . for chamber music, and
the Bohemian String Quartet, whose only rival
to-day is the Kneisel Quartet in the United
States. The Bohemian String Quartet was
organized in 1892 by Karel Hoffman (first vio-
lin), Josef Suk (second violin), Oskar Nedbal
(since replaced by Her old, viola), and Hanus
Vihan ('cello). The Bohemian National The-
atre at Prague is the home of the music drama.
Besides the works of recognized foreign mas-
ters, special favour is very properly shown to
such great national composers as Smetana,
Bohemian Music and Composers 345
Dvorak, Fibich, Kovaf ovic, and Nedbal, as well
as the production of the works of the younger
Bohemian composers.^
* For accounts of the development of the Bohemian music
see: Batka's Die Musik in Bohmen (Prague, 1906), Branberger's
Musikgeschiohtliches aus Bohmgi (Prague, 1906), Neiedl;^'a
Dgjiny predhusitsk^ho zp6vu v CecMch (Prague, 1904), Bor-
recky's Dfijiny Cesk6 Hudby (Prague, 1906), Hostinsk^'s Ceskd
Hudba (Prague, 1909), and Hantich's lia musique tchgque
(Paris and Prague, n. d.)
. CHAPTER XVn
AGEICULTUBE IN BOHEMIA
Bohemia a rich agricultural country — Large amount of the
land in the hands of the nobiUty — Big estates not inten-
sively cultivated — Abolition of serfdom and its influence
on agriculture — Sub-division of the farms — Size of the
holdings — Scarcity of f arm-labom'ers — Wages — How the
small farmers supplement their earnings — - Peasant industries
— Home-made fabrics and peasant costumes — Influence
of home-industries upon farm-labour — ■ The Jew money-
lender a menace to agriculture — Lingering effects of sen-
dom — Nature of the agricultural products — Advances
made in horticulture — Cattle-rearing — What education
is doing for the farmer.
Bohemia is the ricliest agricTiltural kingdom
in the Hapsburg empire. Its soil is fertile, the
climate is favourable, and the country is well
watered. More than half the area is devoted
to agriculture; five per cent, is given to pas-
ture lands; ten per cent, to grass meadows;
less than two per cent, to vegetable-gardening,
and twenty-nine per cent, to forests. It will
thus be seen that less than one per cent, of the
total area of the kingdom is unproductive.
Unfortunately more than a third of the agri-
cultural lands belong to the nobility. The em-
peror and the Eoman Catholic church are
346
Agriculture in Bohemia 347
also large land-holders. Five families — the
Schwarzenbergs, the Lichtensteins, the Lobko-
vics, the Schonborns, and the Thuns — own
nearly eight per cent, of the area of the king-
dom ; and seven hundred and seventy-six land-
lords, constituting less than one-tenth of one
per cent, of the population, own more than
thirty-six per cent, of the area of the country.
" The state is still the tool of the noble." Yet
the big estates yield only one-half in proportion
to the acreage of the small holdings, which
means that they are less intensively cultivated.
The big estates, it is charged, impoverish the
people, since each of the feudal families has
an enormous staff of overseers, labourers, and
hangers-on, none of whom are nearly as pro-
ductive as they would be on small holdings.
Serfdom and labour dues, it will be recalled,
were not finally abolished until 1848, and it was
not until 1867 that the peasants were granted
the right to emigrate. The demand of the Bohe-
mians for the abolition of the robota (enforced
personal service) was one of the causes of the
revolution of 1848, and a patent issued by Em-
peror Frantisek-Josef the 4th of March, 1849,
freed the peasants from all obligations to their
feudal lords.
348 Bohemia and the Cechs
Up to tMs period agriculture was in a very
backward state. But the impetus given by the
freedom of the serfs, and the subsequent intro-
duction of the Bohemian language into the
schools, made the dissemination of agricultural
knowledge possible. The peasants, it will be
recalled, had never given up the Bohemian lan-
guage for the German; but as they were not
taught to read in the mother-tongue (German
being the only language allowed in the schools),
they had remained unfamiliar with the progress
in agricultural and horticultural methods in
other countries. With the study of the Bohe-
mian in the schools, and the publication of
agricultural papers in that language, marked
improvement followed in the matter of stock-
breeding, the care of orchards, rotation of
crops, and the improvisation and purchase of
modern farming implements.
Before 1868 the peasant landlord was not
allowed to sub-divide his farm. It could be
bequeathed to one child only, and custom rather
than law determined which child should inherit
it. In case the peasant farmer died intestate,
the children inherited equally, which meant that
one of the children had to take the farm and
meet the claims of his brothers and sisters.
Agriculture in Bohemia 349
Otherwise it was sold as a whole. Since farm-
ers were required to purchase tracts of land as
wholes, the law made it impossible for the peas-
ants to improve their condition by the purchase
of a field or two at a time, with the added dis-
advantage that when farms were thus sold as
wholes they were generally purchased by the
nobles or the church.
The twenty years that followed the law of
partition of 1868 witnessed an increase of
nearly forty-two thousand new farms that had
been carved out of already existing peasant
holdings, since that law did not affect the large
estates of Bohemia. Farms of less than three
acres multiplied seventy-four per cent, during
this interval ! One and a quarter per cent, of
the farms of Bohemia have only one and a half
acres of land; six and a quarter per cent, of
the holdings are from one and a half to seven
acres; five and a half per cent, from seven to
fourteen acres; fifteen per cent, of the farms
have from fourteen to thirty-five acres, and
twenty per cent, from thirty-five to seventy
acres. It will thus be seen that a third of the
peasant holdings range from fourteen to sev-
enty acres.
With a marked increase in the number of
350 Bohemia and the Cechs
farms and an increase of fifteen per cent, in
the population during the last twenty years,
there has been a decrease in the number of
agricultural labourers. This has been due first
to the large emigration to America and other
foreign countries and second to the drift to the
towns to engage in industrial pursuits. Amer-
ica and the industrial cities of Bohemia, Aus-
tria, and Germany have drained the farming
districts of the young and capable, and have
left on the farms only the boys and the old men.
Many of the farms with the smallest acreage
have the largest families, with the result that
the surplus children — generally the vigorous
young men — go to the cities or emigrate to
foreign countries. This has enormously com-
plicated the agricultural problem with the large
land-owners.
Labour on the farms of the noblemen is usu-
ally well organized. There is generally one su-
perintendent for every thousand acres. He gets
the use of a house and cow, certain stipulated
quantities of beer, wheat, barley, rye, and peas,
and from twenty-five to sixty dollars in money
each year. Many of the regular labourers live
in rooms furnished by the owner and are paid
from sixty-five to seventy dollars a year chiefly
Agriculture in Bohemia 351
in farm products. Boys of from fourteen to
eighteen years who drive teams get from twelve
to sixteen cents a day, and women, who con-
stitute an important element of day labourers,
earn from^eight to twelve cents a day. During
the grain harvest each labourer gets in addition
a pint of beer a day, and during the potato har-
vest a pint of brandy. On the beet farms, how-
ever, during the weeding season women earn
much higher wages.
Among every one thousand men engaged in
agriculture, four hundred are occupied exclu-
sively with their own farms, four hundred and
fifty are farm labourers — a third of whom live
on the farms of their masters — and one hun-
dred and fifty are day labourers. Many small
land owners work part of the year on the large
'estates. They are able to extract from the soU
the necessary food for the year, but the cloth-
ing, taxes, and usury to the Jew money-lender
must be paid out of funds which come from
day wages on the large estates and from the
sale of articles made at their homes during the
winter months. The food of the peasant farmer
is very simple; he is not always well housed,
and personal and household cleanliness are
sometimes regarded indifferently. The house
352 Bohemia and the Cechs
is not infrequently a hovel and too often it
forms a part of the barn-yard and adjoins the
cow-stable and the pig-pen.
In addition to the supplementary earnings of
the small peasant farmers as day labourers on.
the estates of the large landlords, they also add
to their meagre revenues during the winter
months by the manufacture of various articles
that may be made in the homes. Even during
the period of serfdom in Bohemia the peasant
farmers engaged in the manufacture of a vari-
ety of household articles and different kinds of
textiles which gave evidence of artistic power
of no mean order. Not only did they make the
things necessary for the economy of the home
life, but in laces, needle-work, embroidery, bas-
ketry, earthen and glassware, and textile fab-
rics their workmanship was often embellished"
with decorations that were singularly pictur-
esque.
Attention has already been called to the fact
that after the loss of independence the Bohe-
mian towns were largely Germanized, and that
the old traditions in poetry, dances, and folk-
music were kept alive by the peasants. Cer-
tain art traditions in matters of costumes and
household furniture were likewise preserved in
Agriculture in Bohemia 353
this way. The country people, even during
those dark ages which followed Bila Hora,
never entirely broke with the splendid tradi-
tions of the history of their race ; and the mod-
ern renaissance in letters, music, and art, as
pointed out in previous chapters, found its chief
inspiration in the inheritance that had been
kept more or less intact by the peasant farmers.
The peasant costumes that are preserved in
a few districts, as in the neighbourhood of
Domazlice and Plzen, indicate aesthetic inter-
ests and skill of workmanship in the manufac-
ture of fabrics much superior to that found
among people of the same class in other parts
of Europe. The ethnographic museums at
Prague preserve numerous specimens of peas-
ant artistry in matters of costume, but at Dom-
azlice on a Sunday afternoon one may still see
the light blue short skirts of peasant women
worn over a multitude of petticoats, contrasting
strikingly with the brilliant red hosiery and the
low black shoes. The silk apron and the gay
bodice are always elaborately decorated; and
the headdress, which approximates the petti-
coat in width, consists of a large cap adorned
with long horizontal flaps in open needle work.
There are stUl types of the old Chods in the
354 Bohemia and the Cechs
Bohemian Forest — tall, lean old men with
broad-brimmed black hats and long-taUed white
cloth of home-spun; and women with the an-
cient cut of home-made fabrics — long skirts
of red cloth in stiff rich folds, short bodices
embroidered with beads and trimmed with sil-
ver lace, and the collars of the blouses often
embroidered in black " to demonstrate the
mourning of the wearer for the popular hero
Kozina who was a staunch defender of their
privileges." When it is recalled that these
peasants not only designed their costumes, but
manufactured the fabrics from which they were
made, it will be observed that a high degree of
intelligence must characterize the humble occu-
pants of the two and three acre farms in Bo-
hemia.
With the large demand for machine manu-
factured articles, peasant industries in most of
the European countries have disappeared ; but
somehow they still flourish in Bohemia, and
the handiwork of the peasant farmers seems
to hold its own in competition with the manu-
facturers of the large establishments. Consid-
erable numbers of the occupants of small farms
engage in home industries during the winter
months to help " keep the wolf from the door."
Agriculture in Bohemia 355
In northeastern Bohemia, for example, a large
amount of coarse linen is manufactured in the
homes of the peasants during the winter
months. In the region of Krkonose quantities
of glass beads are blown for the memorial
wreaths used in the decoration of graves
in many European countries. Quantities of
chains, tools, and kitchen utensils are made in
the vicinity of the Giant mountains; and, in
the Bohemian Forest, where wood is plentiful
and cheap, wooden vessels and agricultural
implements are manufactured, as well as many
kinds of baskets. In southern Bohemia the
making of mother-of-pearl buttons is a home
industry of the small farmers during the win-
ter, and on the highlands in the east quantities
of human hair are manufactured into nets.
The making of buttons, pocket-books, hand-
bags, lace, embroideries,* cravats, and gloves
occupy thousands of peasant housewives and
daughters during the winter.
Thus the Bohemian peasant farmers supple-
ment their meagre resources at seasons when
they are not occupied in the fields. The inven-
* For an account of the nature and variety of peasant laces
and embroideries see: Rendta TyrSovd's Le paysan tchfeque
— BohSme, Moravie, et SiWsie — Costumes et broderies (Paris
and Prague, n. d.).
356 Bohemia and the Cechs
tive spirit which such forms of industry arouses
has a wholesome influence on the people and
may help to explain the large measure of artis-
tic talent m music, painting, literature, and
sculpture found everywhere ifl Bohemia. This
union of field-work and home industries is now
receiving the encouragement of numerous phil-
anthropic organizations — at Chrudim, Kra-
love Hradec, and Hof ice — whose aims are the
improvement of the commercial side of the
business and facilitating the sale of the prod-
ucts of the peasant workers.
One is repeatedly told in Bohemia that the
curse of the small peasant farmer is the Jew
money-lender. Since the land carries with it
certain suffrage privileges, the Hebrews of the
country, contrary to the habits of their race,
have developed, a land-hunger. The Col-
quhouns ^ describe the process as follows : " A
Jewish pedlar appears one morning in some
hamlet; by and by, by the exercise of the
habits of frugality and industry and by the
special commercial talents of his race, he saves
a little money, gets a liquor license (somehow
or another), and begins to lend money to the
* The whirlpool of Europe. By Archibald R. and Ethel
Colquhoun. New York, 1907.
Agriculture in Bohemia 357
peasant on his crops. This advances to a sys-
tem of mortgages on future crops, and the debt
piles up until the wretched peasant is a mere
serf." They point out that, while in America
and England the Jews are confined to two
classes — the lowest mercantile and the wealthy
commercial, and do not invest in land to any
appreciable extent, — in Bohemia they are ob-
taining a position which menaces the freedom
of the agricultural and industrial proletariat.
In spite of a certain independence inherent
in the Slavic temperament, long years of serf-
dom have left their marks on the character of
the peasant farmers of Bohemia, and traces of
the old regime linger in the cringing before the
local nobility and the kissing of the hand. Edu-
cation, however, is improving both the charac-
ter and the independence of the peasantry.
When one recalls the long centuries during
which the peasants of the country were impov-
erished physically, mentally, and spiritually,
the surprise is not that conditions are so bad
but that they are not worse. Schools, news-
papers, Sokols, and national aspirations have
given the peasants new ideals ; and conditions
in the agricultural districts are everywhere
improving.
358 Bohemia and the Cechs
Wheat, oats, barley, and rye form one-half
the gross value of the agricultural products,
the monetary value of these cereals being ia
the order named. Cabbage, peas, and lentils
constitute a seventh of the value of the agri-
cultural products, potatoes a tenth, and sugar-
beets a fifteenth. Hops, hay, and the vineyards
also play important roles among agricultural
products. Bohemia, which is the third among
the beer producing nations of the world, grows
a fine quality of hops. The hops from the
region of 2atec (Saaz) are regarded as the best
grown anywhere in Europe for the brewing of
beer. The vineyards of Bohemia — chiefly in
the region of Litomef ice and Melnik — are not
consequential. The growing of sugar beets
has increased greatly during recent years, and
Bohemia to-day produces one-fifth of the sugar
of the world.
Horticulture has received much more atten-
tion in recent times than formerly. Many vari-
eties of apples and pears are grown, as well
as plums and other stone-fruits, and large
quantities of fresh fruit are basketed and ex-
ported to the other countries of Europe. In
regions less accessible to railways and river-
ways, the surplus fruit is dried. Lovosice
Agriculture in Bohemia 359
(Lobositz) is the chief centre of the fruit
market.
Cattle-rearing is growing in importance.
DuTing recent years large numbers of high-
bred cattle have been imported from Germany
and Switzerland, and the country now exports
great numbers of milk-cows, young oxen, and
cattle for slaughter. The breed of hogs has
also been improved by importations from Eng-
land and the swine industry has increased in
importance. Great quantities of eggs are
shipped to Germany and England, and the
breeding of chicken and geese forms an im-
portant adjunct of many peasant farms, indi-
vidual farmsteads having as many as nine hun-
dred geese. Considerable attention is given to
bee-culture, so that honey now forms an item
of export. The diversified farming which has ,
been introduced into Bohemia through schools,
newspapers, and lecture courses has greatly
increased the value of the agricultural output.
Much more might be done through the organi-
zation of elementary schools of agriculture and
horticulture, and more emphasis placed on the
publication of books and journals calculated to
interest and help the small landholders.
The Bohemian peasant farmers, it should be
360 Bohemia and the Cechs
noted, do not accept poverty as an inheritance ;
they display commendable ambition for im-
provement, and when this is not possible in the
fatherland* — now that the floodgates of emi-
gration are open — they come to America,
where they secure holdings in the central west
and become the most valued members of the
great class of progressive American agricul-
turalists. The pity is that home conditions
force so many to leave Bohemia; for with the
extraordinary development of industrial life,
the nation needs more than ever, not only the
fruits of the soil which their labours might
bring forth, but also the support of a strong
yeoman class not represented by the present
nobility. And this might be developed if eco-
nomic conditions were made less unfavourable.^
1 For further accounts of agriculture in Bohemia see: " Mod-
em conditions of agriculture in Bohemia " by Katherine B.
Davis in Journal of Political Economy, Sept. 1900, Vol. 8, pp.
491-533; Rieger's Cech;^ Zeme i Ndrod (Prague, 1863), and
Hantich's La situation ^conomique en Boheme in "Questions
diplomatique," Vol. 7 (Paris, 1903). Miss Balch's Our Slavonic
fellow-citizens (New York, 1910) appeared after this work went to
press. It contains a deal of interesting matter on economic con-
ditions among the Bohemians.
CHAPTER XVin
INDUSTRY AND COMMEECB
Bohemia one of the leading commercial countries in Europe —
Plzen and the manufacture of beer — 'The liquor industry
— Construction of locomotives and railway carriages at
' Prague — The textile industries — Paper — Bohemian glass
— Cbinaware and porcelain — Mineral products in Bohemia
— The coal fields — Iron — Diversified home-industries —
Lace — Prague the centre of the industrial Ufe of the king-
dom — Other industrial towns — The commerce of Bohemia
— Exports and imports — Commercial relations with the
United States — Means of transportation — Waterways,
railways, and highways.
Bohemia is rapidly becoming one of the lead-
ing industrial countries of Europe. Already
it is first in the Hapsburg empire. The sugar
industry, -which dates from the beginning of
the nineteenth century, has become one of the
most important, and one-fifth of the world's
supply of sugar comes from Bohemia. There
are a hundred and forty mills for the refining
and manufacture of sugar, and several hundred
thousand acres of land are devoted to the grow-
ing of sugar-beets. Large quantities of refined
sugar are exported to Great Britain, Canada,
and British India.
361
362 Bohemia and the Cechs
The quantities of hops and barley cultivated
make brewing and malting prosperous indus-
tries. The brewing of beer for export has
reached a high degree of perfection in Bohemia,
and the Plzen (Pilsen) breweries are world-
famous. The citizens' brewery (Mestansky
Pivovar) of Plzen, which produces " the pale
yellow-green elixir of life," was organized as
a joint-stock company in 1842. Two hundred
and fifty citizens ventured one hundred and
twenty-five dollars each in the building and
equipment of a brewery. To-day each one of
these shares yields an annual profit of two
thousand five hundred dollars ; more than four
hundred thousand barrels of beer are annually
sent all over the world, and one thousand work-
men are employed. The vaults are hewn in the
solid rock and have a length of five miles.
There are also important breweries at Bude-
jovice (Budweis) and in the region of Prague,
the Smichov brewery ranking next to Plzen as
the largest in the empire. The malting indus-
try is also well developed and the country
exports large quantities of malt to Germany,
Italy, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and
Denmark.
The liquor industry is likewise great. The
Industry and Commerce 363
liquors are produced from grain, potatoes, and
molasses. Not only in Bohemia, but also in
Moravia and Silesia, large quantities of liquor
are made from molasses. The distilling indus-
try is an important source of revenue to the
empire, the kingdom, and the communities in
which the distilleries are located. There are
something like two hundred and fifty distiller-
ies in the country.
These industries and agriculture have
greatly increased the demand for machinery,
and Bohemia to-day manufactures large quan-
tities of machines for use in such industries
not only at home, but carries on a large export
trade with Russia, Italy, Sweden, British India,
and South America. The Bohemian machine
industry is also actively employed in manufac-
turing machines for liquor distilleries, refrig-
erating plants for breweries, as well as fittings
and machinery for mining and smelting.
Prague is a centre for the building of loco-
motives and the construction of railway car-
riages, and the International Sleeping Car
Company of Europe is one of its best custom-
ers. Here also one finds large bridge-building
establishments. At Plzen there are important
gun factories and establishments for the manu-
364 Bohemia and the Cechs
facture of armaments for battle-ships, and at
Kladno large steel works for cannons, motor-
carriages, and electric dynamos. Both in bicy-
cles and motor cars Bohemia has taken an
active part.
Textile industries have increased more than
threefold during the last twenty-five years.
There are to-day seven thousand five hundred
textile factories in the kingdom and they
employ many hundred thousand persons. The
textile industries include the manufacture of
cotton and cotton cloth, wool and woolen goods,
linen, and jute goods. The Eeichenberg (Lib-
erec) district is the chief centre of the cotton
industry.
Bohemia has a large paper industry and the
country has attained a reputation for great
perfection in the matter of art printing, helio-
gravure, and coloured printing. It also sup-
plies Mohammedan countries with their fez-
caps, and the armies of the Soudan and Egypt
with their helmets. Both England and the
United States buy large quantities of kid-
gloves from Bohemia.
For centuries Bohemia has been famous for
its glass, and the industry is still an important
one. There are in the kingdom more than
Industry and Commerce 365
ninety glass works, eighty refineries of mirror-
glass, and more than two thousand five hundred
small factories where glass is polished, an-
nealed, engraved, painted, and cut. Glass ma-
terials are abundant. The Ore mountains fur-
nish a pure quartz and a limestone of snowy
whiteness, and the extensive forests provide
fuel for the furnaces and the ashes which are
necessary in the polishing of the glass.
The Bohemian glass rivals rock-crystal in
its transparency and clear whiteness. It is
much used for artistic purposes because of its
tenacity, hardness, and constancy of lustre.
Much of the highly prized glass-ware of the
last two centuries was made in Bohemia, espe-
cially the drinking mugs, decanters, goblets,
and wine sets. Various colours are used, such
as red, green, blue, white, and amber. The
surface of the glass is stained and the design
is cut into the clear crystal. Besides the char-
acteristic Bohemian glass, great quantities of
mirror-glass are manufactured. The two chief
glass centres are Novy Svet (Neuwelt) and the
Bohemian Forest (Sumava).
There are sixty-two china and porcelain fac-
tories in the country and great quantities of the
Gablonz wares (Jablonecke zbozi) are made,
366 Bohemia and the Cechs
such as buttons, beads, and ornaments. There
are also important industries at Turnov and
elsewhere for the manufacture of jewelry from
garnets.
Bohemia is rich in mineral products. It pro-
duces eighty-two per cent, of the brown coal
and thirty-four per cent, of the black coal mined
in the entire Hapsburg empire. The western
part of the kingdom has vast coal fields, from
which great quantities are exported to Ger-
many by the Elbe (Labe) river. The great
coal strike ten years ago enormously enhanced
the cost of production in every branch of trade,
and some of the glass works were forced to
suspend operation for a period.
The iron deposits are near the coal fields and
this makes the smelting of the ore economical.
There are graphite works in southern Bohemia
and Moravia, and Bohemia is the only part of
the dual-monarchy that produces silver. The
silver mines at Kutna Hora were famous dur-
ing the mediaeval period, but they 'were flooded
seven years ago and are no longer operated.
The silver mines at Pribram, however, have
been worked uninterruptedly since the year 755.
Here are found the deepest mines in Europe.
The principal shaft descends three thousand
Industry and Commerce 367
three hundred feet. Lead is found in the vicin-
ity of silver, and the sands of the rivers yield
a little gold. Other metals are tin, bismuth,
and antimony. Eock salt is about the only
useful mineral product not found in Bohe-
mia.
Home-industries, mentioned in the previous
chapter, form an important part of the diver-
sified industrial occupations of the kingdom.
The cutting and polishing of rubies and other
precious stones furnish employment to a large
number of men in the vicinity of Turnov.
Some of the work is done in the shops of the
tradesmen, but most of it is done in the homes
of the people. Two thousand women are en-
gaged in linen embroidery in eastern Bohemia,
chiefly at Pardubice, Hlinsko, Skuc, Nasavrky,
and Chrudim. Great quantities of mother-of-
pearl are used in the homes in the manufac-
ture of buttons, buckles for belts, inlaid work,
and other articles of ornament. I was told that
the town of 2irovnice used annually one hun-
dred and eighty tons of the nacre, and Caslav,
Kolin, Kralove Hradec, Podebrady, and several
other towns consume nearly as much mother-
of-pearl in similar home-industries. Two vil-
lages — Prosec and 2abor — are engaged in
368 Bohemia and the Cechs
the manufacture of over a hundred different
varieties of pipes from clay, alderwood, briar-
root, ebony, meerschaum, and porcelain. Large
quantities of toys are made in Dedova and
Pfestice, and it is interesting to note that the
children take part in the manufacture of play-
things. Whole families work together and
make some one kind of toy, as dolls, drums,
toy-animals, etc. Many of the wooden toys are
made in the Bohemian Forest by peasant farm-
ers ' families during the winter months.
Most of the gloves of Bohemia are the prod-
uct of home-industry. The leather is cut at the
factories, but the stitching is done in the homes.
There is usually division of labour in the fam-
ily, one member doing the machine-sewing,
another the ornamental stitching, another the
button-holes, etc. Many thousand persons,
chiefly women and girls, are engaged at their
homes in this industry at Prague and the near
towns — Pribram, Eozmital, Hofovice, Dobfis
and Hostomice. An important industry along
the banks of the Elbe and the Vltava is
wicker-work — the manufacture of baskets,
baby-carriages, hampers, etc.
The cottage-loom is still found in Bohemia,
and thirty thousand men in such villages as
Industry and Commerce 369
Broumov, Nachod, and Chotebof are engaged
in weaving cotton and linen cloth. The weav-
ing is often done only during the winter months,
the balance of the year being devoted to the
cultivation of the soil. But the compensation
is not great. By working twelve hours a day
a man can earn sixty cents a week weaving fus-
tian; from $1 to $1.25 weaving Oxford shirt-
ings ; about the same for towels and sail-cloth ;
$2.50 a week for fine table linen, and expert
weavers sometimes earn as much as $3 to $4
a week on textiles for upholstery. Mr. Burda *
in writing of the village textile workers
says:
' ' These poor toilers stick to their native soil,
feeling isolated, in a little world of their own,
knowing nothing of the great outer world, and
exhibiting little energy. If contentment be a
virtue, then they have it. Even in specially
hard times they seem to fortify themselves
with the very spirit of contentment, and to-
gether— husband, wife, and children — bear
their burden of cares bravely. ' '
In the region of 2amberk there are twenty
lace schools and a thousand women engaged in
* Home-industries in Bohemia. By K. Burda. In " Guide
to the kingdom of Bohemia." Prague, 1906. ^mm:
370 Bohemia and the Cechs
lace-making, and large numbers at Sedlice and
Strazov make the piUow-lace. Six hundred
persons at Chrudim and Chotebof are employed
in making* wigs, hair-nets, frisettes, and other
requirements of the professional hair-dresser.
Eight hundred people in Bakov-nad-Jizerou
are engaged in rush-plaiting, such as bath-
slippers, hand-bags, wall-mats, hats and hel-
mets for tropical wear, etc. Some nails and
many shoes are still made in the homes of the
workers, but these two industries are now being
absorbed by the large and well-equipped fac-
tories. It will be noted, however, that home-
industries still play a large role in the economic
life of Bohemia.
Most of the industries of Bohemia have their
own special societies or guilds. Foremost
among such directing agencies are the cham-
bers of commerce at Prague, Eeichenberg ( Lib-
er ec), Plzeii, Eger (Cheb), and Budejovice
(Budweis). As pointed out earlier in this
work, the chambers of commerce exert an im-
portant influence over the industrial life of the
nation. There are also societies of the textile
manufactures, sugar industry, machine and
ironware factories and foundries, brewing in-
djj^try, kid-glove manufacturers, liquor iudus-
Industry and Commerce 371
try, etc. Labourers also seem to have numer-
ous organizations for the improvement and
protection of themselves and their crafts.
Prague is not only the intellectual and polit-
ical centre of the kingdom, but also the indus-
trial centre. Most of the important industries
of the country are represented at the capital.
It has extensive breweries, car shops, machine
works, construction establishments, factories
for electrical appliances, distilleries, and a
variety of food industries. The gross tonnage
of its exports exceeds five million tons, and its
imports two million tons. It is the banking
centre of the kingdom. The Zemska Banka is
the official national bank of the country. The
2ivnostenska Banka (Industrial Bank) is very
important from a commercial point of view.
It has four branches in Bohemia — at Plzen,
Budejovice, Pardubice, and Tabor; five in
Moravia — ■ at Brno, Olomouc, Jihlava, Proste-
jov, and Moravska Ostrava, and at Vienna,
Triest, Cracow, and Lemberg. There are eight
or ten other important private banks and two
savings banks — the Bohemian Savings Bank
and the Savings Bank of Prague — at the cap-
ital. There are at Prague, Smichov, Vino]^
rady, and Karlin cooperative societies, a1
372 Bohemia and the Cechs
more than three hundred such societies else-
where in the kingdom.
There are more than thirty other important
commfercial towns in Bohemia, but none of
them are large places. Plzen, the great brew-
ing centre, has only seventy thousand inhab^
itants; Eeichenberg (Liberec), with thirty-five
thousand, is the chief centre for the textile
industries; Budejovice (Budweis), on the
Vltava, with a population of forty thousand,
manufactures beer, earthenware, and lead-
pencils; Cheb (Eger), with twenty-four thou-
sand, makes machinery and cloth; tjsti (Aus-
sig), on the Elbe, with thirty-seven thousand
inhabitants, builds river-barges and has numer-
ous chemical industries; Most (Briix), in the
centre of the rich coal-fields, with twenty-two
thousand inhabitants, has important iron foun-
dries and sugar refineries; Duchcov (Dux),
also in the coal region, with twelve thousand
inhabitants, manufactures glass, porcelain, and
earthenware; 2atec (Saatz), with sixteen thou-
sand inhabitants, is the great hop centre and
it also has machine-shops and a variety of
industries; Jablonec (G-ablonz) on the Nisa,
with twenty-one thousand inhabitants, has im-
&tant ornamental glass and paper industries ;
Industry and Commerce 373
Pardubice, with seventeen thousand inhabit-
ants, has distilliag breweries and sugar refiner-
ies, and manufactures quantities of musical
instruments ; Carlsbad, and many other towns
also have diversified industries. The small
villages, as elsewhere shown, make important
contributions to the commerce of Bohemia by
the products of numerous home-industries.
With industries so highly developed, and
with so much of the area of the country devoted
to productive agriculture, the commerce of
Bohemia is naturally large. Germany gets
forty-eight per cent, of the exports, and thirty-
seven per cent, of the imports come from that
country. Both the export and the import trade
with Great Britain is large, and the same may
be said of the United States. Nearly nine mil-
lion dollars' worth of products are exported to
our country annually from Bohemia. Taking
a few of the leading exports that come through
the three American consulates at Prague,
Eeichenberg (Liberec), and Carlsbad (Kar-
lovy Vary), it may be noted that Prague sends
to the United States each year commercial
wares to the value of three and a half million
dollars. The largest items are beer, $850,0|
navy-beans (chiefly to Boston and vicin:
374 Bohemia and the Cechs
$550,000; hops, $300,000; human hair, $300,-
000; gloves, $340,000; clover seed, $162,000;
books in the Bohemian language, $100,000 ; and
porcelain, $90,000. Goods to the value of three
and a quarter million dollars are sent through
the American consulate at Reichenberg as
foUows, — jewelry, artificial flowers, woollen
cloth, and linen goods. Two million dollars'
worth of Bohemian products come to America
annually through the Carlsbad consulate, such
as musical instruments, hops, porcelain and
glassware, pottery and earthenware. The chief
imports of Bohemia from the United States
are raw cotton, machinery, and agricultural
implements.
Bohemia enjoys fairly favourable facilities
for the transportation of her commercial com-
modities. The Elbe and several of its branches
have been made navigable for light barges, and
there is under construction an elaborate scheme
for the connection of the Elbe and Vltava with
the Danube which, when completed, will give
direct waterway connection between the Ger-
man ocean and the Black sea. This will greatly
reduce the cost of exporting sugar, coal, grain,
and lumber, and of importing cotton. The
cafeitry is one net-work of railways, the first
Industry and Commerce 375
having been built so early as 1825-1828. Prague
is the centre of the railway business, and all
the important lines radiate from that city.
There are two lines to Vienna — one through
Kolm and the other through Tabor. The
Tabor line has an extension south through
Budejovice to Liaz, and the Kolm line a branch
east through Pardubice to Brno. There is a
line southwest from Prague through Plzen and
Domazlice that connects with the Bavarian
railway to Munich and a branch that extends
from Plzen through Marienbad, Cheb (Eger),
and Franzensbad to Nuremberg and Frankfurt.
Three lines go west from Prague to Carlsbad,
— one through Plzen and Marienbad, another
by 2atec, and a third by Most (Briix). Two
lines follow the Vltava and the Elbe to the
Saxon frontier, and there are two lines to the
north, besides a large number of minor lines.
The country is excellently railroaded, and few
places in the kingdom are very far from a rail-
way line. The roadways are generally fair.
CHAPTEE XIX
THE OLD TOWN OP PBAGtTE
Divisions of the city of Prague — The Old Town — Earliest
bridges spanning the Vltava — The Charles bridge — Its
towers and monuments — The old Town Hall — Chapel
and council chamber — The l^n church — Alterations by
the Jesuits — The Powder gate — Josephtown, the ancient
ghetto — Old synagogue and hall — The oldest Hebrew
burying-ground in Europe — Some noted tombs — The
Vy§ehrad, the acropolis of Prague — The basilica of St. Peter
and St. Paul — Its legends — The church cemetery — An
old Slavic monastery.
Golden Prague, the city of a hundred towers,
is a cluster of towns that have grown together
or been connected by a half dozen bridges over
the Vltava. In consequence the present munici-
pality is composed of seven quite distinct parts.
On the right bank of the Vltava are the Old
Town (Stare Mesto), Josephtown (Josefov),
the New Town (Nove Mesto), and Vysehrad.
On the left bank of the river are the Small
Town (Mala Strana), Hradcany (the kremlin),
and Holesovice-Bubny. Four independent mu-
nicipalities that form integral parts of the cap-
ital are Karlin, Smichov, 2izkov, and Vinoh-
y. Including these suburbs Prague has a
376
The Old Town of Prague 377
population of something more tlian half a mil-
lion inhabitants.
Small Town and Hradcany, described in the
next chapter, are connected with Old Town by
the historic Charles bridge, with its ancient
towers and open-air sculpture gallery. Judith,
the queen of Vaclav IV, built the first stone
bridge over the Vltava in 1167 to replace a
wooden structure. This was destroyed by a
flood in 1342 and King Charles began the pres-
ent stone bridge in 1357. It was completed
just before the outbreak of the Hussite wars,
although the statues of the saints and other
ornamentations were not added until the sev-
enteenth and the eighteenth centuries. It was
partially destroyed by the flood of 1890, but
has since been rebuilt.
The bridge is five hundred and fifty yards
long and rests upon sixteen arches. Both its
approaches are flanked with interesting Grothic
towers for defence, and its sides are orna-
mented with twenty-eight statues that rest
upon pedestals that have great variety in form
and design. The tower on the Old Town side
is adorned with the armorial bearings of the
lands once united with Bohemia and with stat-
ues of Charles IV and his son Vaclav IV. On
378 Bohemia and the Cechs
the Small Town side there are double towers,
the high arch of the entrance being flanked by
towers of different shapes and periods. The
lower tower dates from the thirteenth century
and is a remnant of the old stone bridge of
Queen Judith, while the higher one belongs to
the middle of the fifteenth century. The inter-
vening space is roofless and at the back it is
spanned by Gothic arches above which are gal-
leries with battlements and barbicans.
The twenty-eight statues are chiefly in the
baroque style. That of St. John of Nepomuk,
in the middle of the bridge, is in bronze, and
that of St. Philip Benetius, near the Small
Town end, is in marble. A large wooden cross
which was a part of the old bridge was re-
placed by one of stone in 1648. It bears an
inscription in Hebrew stating that it was put
up at the expense of a Jew as a punishment
for mocking the cross. The statues at its side
are of the Virgin and St. John the Evangelist.
Some of the best statues of the gallery are
those of St. Luitgard and St. Ivo by Braun
and St. Francis Borgia, St. Ignatius Loyola,
and St. Francis Xavier by the Prokov brothers.
Close to the pillar of the bridge, where it rests
on the Kampa isle, is the curious statue of
The Old Town of Prague 379
Bruncvik (Roland) in the picturesque attire of
a mediaeval knight, having an unsheathed sword
in hand and bearing the coat of arms of the
Old Town.
The old Town Hall, with its picturesque pro-
jecting chapel, its great tower, its curious clock,
and its memorable council-chambers, is a pub-
lic building of abiding historic interest. The
oldest part of the building dates from the year
1338, the chapel and clock tower date from 1381,
but most of the present structure was rebuilt
during the past century in the modern Gothic
style. At the side of the richly ornamented old
Grothic porch is the curious astronomical clock.
Besides giving the hours of the day, and the
rising and the setting of the sun and moon,
it presents a procession of moving figures
whenever the clock strikes a new hour. The
cock crows, and the figures that move include
the twelve apostles. The projecting chapel of
St. Lawrence has a beautifully carved ceiling
and the walls are adorned with carvings that
represent the armorial bearings of the guUds
of Prague. The hall of the lord mayor con-
tains portraits of the chief officials of the city
since 1611. In the old council chamber there
is an interesting panelled and carved ceiling
380 Bohemia and the Cechs
suspended on gilt chains; and the handsome
new council chamber contains the two colossal
historical j)aintings of Brozik representing the
trial of John Hus at Constance and the election
of George of Podebrad as king of Bohemia.
The latter event took place in the old Town
Hall. In the adjoining square the members of
the Protestant nobility were executed after the
battle of White Mountain.
The Tyn church, for two centuries the temple
of the Hussites, looks down on the bloody
square that witnessed the extinction of the
cause that its famous preachers had so long
represented. Here the famous moral reform-
ers of the period of Charles IV and his son
Vaclav IV denounced the immorality of the
clergy; here George of Podebrad, the Protes-
tant king, was crowned, and here Gallus Ca-
hera, the personal friend of Martin Luther,
attempted to transform the ancient utraquism
into modern Lutheranism. It once contained
a statue of George of Podebrad with a sword
in hand pointing to the chalice, but this was
removed by the Jesuits in 1623. They also
caused the two great bells of the towers, known
as Hus and Hieronymous, to be recast, with
the obvious purpose of purging them of heresy ;
POWDEK GATE.
The Old Town of Prague 381
but when in their new form they were again
placed in the towers, those who sympathized
with the ancient faith found to their delight
that the recasting and the rechristeniag had
not altered the sound. Svatopluk Cech, the
Bohemian poet, has made this legend the sub-
ject of an interesting poem. The beautiful
fagade, concealed from view from the market
place by houses, contains two pointed towers
and each is crowned by four graceful turrets.
The interior of the church contains among ob-
jects of special interest the tomb of Tycho
Brahe, the pulpit from which John of Eokycan
is said to have preached, and an Assumption
by Karel Skreta.
The old moat of the city has been trans-
formed into one of the finest streets in Europe,
and the only existing evidence of the fortifi-
cations of the Old Town is the renowned Gothic
tower known as the Powder gate (Prasna
brana). It dates from the end of the fifteenth
century and survives to-day in one of the busi-
est sections of the city as a visible connection
with the period when Prague was strongly
fortified. It has a beautiful vault with a richly
decorated fire-place, and once formed a part
of the king's Old Town residence, with which
382 Bohemia and the Cechs
it was connected by a wooden bridge. After
the Hussite wars, it will be remembered, tbe
Bohemian kings lived chiefly in the Old Town.
Josephtown,^ the ancient ghetto, forms an
interesting part of old Prague. Although it
is rapidly making way for modern buildings,
a synagogue covered with the dust of ages and
several crooked and neglected streets give one
a notion of one of the earliest European settle-
ments of the children of Israel. The Old-New-
School, a synagogue which dates from the thir-
teenth century, is in the Gothic style of archi-
tecture, although the capitals of the columns
of the interior mark the transition from Eo-
manesque to Gothic. " It is a sombre and sad
building like the history of the Jews themselves
during the middle ages." Another interesting
building is the old Jewish town hall with a
bizarre baroque tower and a clock with hands
that move from right to left.
Near-by is the old Jewish burying-ground
which is nearly eight hundred years old, the
oldest existing Jewish cemetery in Europe. It
contains countless monuments, the symbols of
which proclaim the tribes to which the deceased
' F. Marion Crawford's romance, The Witch of Prague, gives an
account of the life of Josephtown during the mediaeval period.
The Old Town of Prague 383
belonged. Uplifted hands indicate the resting
place of a member of the house of Aaron; a
pitcher marks the grave of a member of the
tribe of Levi; while a bunch of grapes simply
means an Israelite without reference to specific
tribal connections. Here may be seen the sar-
cophagus of the famous Jehuda ben Bezulel
Loew, the rabbi, scientist, and magician, who
was a friend of Tycho Brahe and Rudolph II,
and to whom some of the tales of sorcery of
old Prague relate. Thirty-three gravestones
surround the monument of the famous rabbi.
These mark the resting place of his disciples.
The tomb of the renowned cabbalist, Aaron
Spisa, is also here, and not far away is the
beautiful marble monument of the first Jewish
noble-woman in Bohemia — Bas-Schevi of
Traunberg. Abigdor Caro, whose Selichu sang
the fate of his co-religionists during the middle
ages ; Mardochai Meisl, the founder of the an-
cient synagogue referred to above; Eabbi Op-
penheim, the distinguished bibliophile whose
library is now at Oxford; David Gans, the
friend of Tycho Brahe and Kepler; Salomon
del Medigo de Candia, the pupil of Galileo, and
many other Hebrew scholars are buried here.
The inscriptions on many, of the older tombs
384 Bohemia and the Cechs
have been entirely defaced, but on others the
old Hebrew characters, arranged in symmet-
rical lines and with decorative effect, recite
the names (Jf patriarchs concerning whom the
cemetery legends are silent, " thousands and
thousands of men long forgotten among their
own people. ' ' ^
The Vysehrad, the acropolis of Prague and
the seat of the pagan gods, was the reputed
residence of Libusa, the semi-mythical foun-
dress of the Pfemysl dynasty. The mediaeval
citadel, which played an important role in the
early history of Bohemia, has disappeared;
and two churches — the chapel of St. Martin
and the basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul —
are the only monuments that mark the site of
the prophecy of " the grand town, the fame
of which reaches to the skies." The Eoman-
esque chapel of St. Martin, dating from the
twelfth century, is said to have been founded
by St. Adalbert on the spot where a renowned
pagan temple had long stood.
The basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul, orig-
inally a Eomanesque building erected toward
the close of the eleventh century, was trans-
* For an account of the old Josephtown see: Foges' Alther-
thtimer der Prager Josefstadt (Prague, 1882).
The Old Town of Prague 385
formed into the late Grothic style during the
fifteenth century. The following legend, vari-
ants of which are met with in other churches
in Europe, is related of this basilica: A poor
and depressed peasant was in the woods gath-
ering berries for his large family. He met a
jovial hunter who asked him the cause of his
mental depression. On being told that it was
due to the anxiety of caring for a large family,
the hunter, who was none other than the devil,
said that if the peasant would give him the
child that he had never seen, he would make
him a rich man. The bargain was signed and
sealed, and upon his return home the distressed
parent found that his wife had given birth to
a seventh son. Then he was convinced that the
hunter, who had talked him out of his child,
was certainly the evil one, and he forthwith
dedicated the new-born son to St. Peter, and
called upon the apostle to take the child under
his protection and shield him against the arts
of the devil. This the saint promised to do on
condition that the boy should be dedicated to
God and educated for the priesthood. Peter
was given a pious training and when he grew
to years of maturity he became a priest at the
church of the Vysehrad. When he was twenty-
386 Bohemia and the Cechs
four years old the devil appeared and, in ac-
cordance with, the contract, demanded the soul
of the priest; but St. Peter forthwith put in
an appearance and declared the contract a for-
gery. At once the saint and the devil engaged
in bitter words and the poor priest became so
frightened that he ran into the church and
began reading the mass ; whereupon ,St. Peter
proposed a compromise: if the devil would
fly to Rome and return with one of the columns
of St. Peter's cathedral before the priest had
reached the end of the mass, the original bar-
gain should be consummated. Assuming that
he had plenty of time, the devil accepted the
proposition and in a few minutes was back
with the column. But before he had reached
the Vysehrad St. Peter met him and began to
belabour him with a horsewhip which caused
the huge pillar to drop into the Vltava, and
before the devil could get it out the priest had
reached the Ite missa est, and so his mass was
at an end. St. Peter laughed heartily, but the
angry devil took the column and dropped it
on the roof of the church. It fell through to
the ground, made a great opening in the roof,
and thereafter it was not possible to repair
the hole. Each time that workmen mended it.
The Old Town of Prague 387
the hole reappeared whenever it rained, and
this continued down to the time of Joseph II,
the emperor who granted the edict of religious
toleration and secularized hundreds of the mon-
asteries. Just what compact he made with the
devil is not known; but after he had ordered
workmen to repair the hole in the roof, rain
and wind no longer entered the church, and it
is as whole now as on the day when the saint
and the devil had the controversy over the
validity of the contract concerning the soul of
the priest Peter.
The church of St. Peter and St. Paul contains
a number of interesting pictures, including a
Mary Magdalena by Skreta, a St. Florian by
Molitor, a high-altar piece representing St.
Peter and St. Paul by Eeiner, and a curious
mural painting over the sacristy representing
the Vysehrad as it appeared before the out-
break of the Hussite wars. The cemetery that
surrounds the church is the final resting place
of a number of distinguished Bohemians, in-
cluding, among authors, Vitezslav Halek, Bo-
zena Nemcova, Jan Neruda, Vaclav Benes, Tfe-
bizsky, Vaclav Hanka, and Julius Zeyer, the
latter the poet of the Vysehrad.
In the Vysehrad street is the Emaus mon-
388 Bohemia and the Cechs
astery, founded in 1347 by Charles IV to take
the place of the ancient Slavic monastery of
St. Prokop on the Sazava. The earliest home
of Slavic letters, it will be remembered, was
the monastery at Sazava, but it had been closed
after the Eoman ritual had superseded the
Slavic, which was the form adopted by the
earliest Christians in Bohemia. King Charles,
however, cherished the desire of reviving the
original Slavic ritual, and obtained the consent
of Pope Clement VI for the foundation of this
new monastery on the representation, remarks
Count Liitzow,^ " that there were in Bohemia
many dissidents and unbelieving men who,
when the gospel was expounded and preached
to them in Latin, did not heed it, but who might
be guided to the Christian faith by men of their
own race." Palacky affirms that, nest to the
foundation of the university of Prague, the
establishment of this Slavic monastery was the
chief aim of the emperor-king. Slavic monks
were summoned from Croatia, Bosnia, and
Dalmatia, and the new foundation gave marked
impetus to the study of the national language
which bore precious fruits during the period
* The story of Prague. By Count Ltttzow. Second edition.
London, 1907.
The Old Town of Prague 389
of the moral revolution. The monastery was
in the hands of the Hussites until the end of
the sixteenth century. It is related that on
the 6th of July, 1592, riots occurred here be-
cause the abbot had commanded his people to
work on that day. But the memory of Master
John Hus was still revered by the Bohemians
and they refused to labour on the anniversary
of his martyrdom, and forced the unwilling
abbot to declare a holiday.^
* The chief authority on Old Prague is Tomek's monu-
mental history of the city in twelve volumes, but published only
in the Bohemian language. For briefer works see: The story
of Prague: Mediseval town series. By Count Lutzow. London,
1907. Prague: Lea villes d'art c^lfebres. By Louis Leger. Paris,
1907. Prague, Historie, art, dconomie. By Henn Hantich.
Paris and Prague, n. d. Malebn^ cesty po Praze. By Herold
and Oliva. Pour volumes. Prague, 1866-1896. Baedeker's
Austria-Hungary devotes less than a dozen pages to Prague and
is foo superficial to be of much use to the traveller. A fuller
guide-book (in German) is Hugo Milrath's Prag und Umgebung.
(Berlin, 1909.) Count Latzow's Story of Prague is an excellent
historical guide for the tourist, and it admirably supplements
the meagre Baedeker.
CHAPTER XX
hrad6any: the kbemlin of pbague
The huge pile of buildings known as Hrad6any — For eight
centuries the residence of the Bohemian kings — Erection
of a royal palace here by Charles IV — Additions by Vladis-
lav II, Ferdinand I, and Rudolph — The noble Gothic hall of
King Vladislav — The round towers and council chamber —
The Cathedral of St. Vitus — Its Gothic choir — Tombs of
the Bohemian kings — The chapel of St. Vdclav — Interior
decorations — The church of St. George — Tomb of St. Lud-
mila — The Belvedere — Capuchin monastery and the church
of Loretto — The abbey of Strahov — Palaces of the Bohe-
mian nobility — The Waldstein palace — Its garden-refeo-
tory — Bohemian Ethnographic Museum — The PetRn —
Picturesque houses — The gaudy Jesuit church of St. Nicholas.
The huge pile of buildings — castle, cathe-
dral, churches, monasteries, arsenals, parks —
known as the Hradcany, the kremlin of the
ancient capital, is both picturesque and inter-
esting. Few spots in Europe combine so many-
lines of general interest as Hradcany. It is,
indeed, " the most beautiful spot of Prague,
a subject of wonder to the stranger and the
Bohemian nation, proud of its great and glori-
ous past, and an object of national veneration."
To except the princes of the mythical period
390
Hradcauy 391
who lived on the Vysehrad, the abode of the
pagan gods, Hradcany was the site of the cas-
tles of the Bohemian rulers for eight hundred
years. Certainly from the eleventh century,
and probably earlier, it was the kremlin of the
Pfemysl rulers. The present castle occupies
the spot of a royal palace that was burnt down
in 1303. The buildings that one sees to-day
date from the time of Charles IV (1346-1378).
Charles made Prague not only the capital of
the kingdom but also of the empire, and early
in his reign he began the erection of a worthy
imperial palace. He had been educated in
Paris, and the Louvre palace was taken as the
model. Unfortunately many parts of the castle
were destroyed during the numerous sieges of
Prague, so that few traces of the original build-
ing remain. It was used as a fortress during
the Hussite wars, and was nearly destroyed in
1421 when Sigismund's troops were besieged
here by the national forces. After the em-
peror's soldiers were forced to capitulate, the
angry nationalists attempted to complete the
destruction of the stronghold of the hated
ruler, but this additional calamity was averted
by the combined persuasions of the Bohemian
nobility and the leading citizens of Prague.
392 Bohemia and the Cechs
At the termination of the Hussite wars,
slight repairs were made, but it was not occu-
pied again by the Bohemian kings until the
time of Vladislav II (1471-1516). He restored
parts of the palace and built the mammoth
Gothic hall that bears his name. Some addi-
tions were made by Ferdinand I (1526-1564),
but the most considerable additions and res-
torations date from the reign of Eudolph II
(1576-1612). He made Prague his permanent
residence, and being a man of scientific and
literary tastes, he gave personal attention to
the embellishment of his palace. The royal
gardens, orangery, riding school, and the lion's
court, with the beautiful old bronze fountain,
date from the time of Eudolph. He also made
vast collections of art works, part of which
disappeared during the Thirty Years' War,
while the balance were sold by Joseph II in
1782, at a time when he contemplated turning
the castle into barracks.
The palace has been occupied but rarely by
Bohemian kings since the time of Eudolph.
After his abdication in 1848 to the time of his
death, the Emperor Ferdinand made the Hrad-
cany palace his residence; it was occupied for
a time by Prince Eudolph, and Emperor Fran-
Hradcany 393
tisek-Josef has received the Bohemian nobility
there during his brief visits to Prague.
The most ancient part of the present palace
is the large Gothic hall built by King Vladislav
in 1484. It was here that the Bohemian nobles
did homage to their new sovereign after his
coronation and where the coronation banquet
was served. The hall is two hundred and
twenty-five feet long and sixty-two feet wide.
A sixteenth century chronicler says of it
" there was no building like it in all Europe,
none that was longer, higher, and broader, and
yet had no pillars." It was the work of a
Bohemian architect, Eejsek of Prostejov. Cav-
alry tournaments sometimes took place here
and we read that " at the banquets, the stew-
ards and cupbearers on horseback waited upon
the assembled nobility of Bohemia, who were
perhaps the richest and proudest in the whole
of central Europe. ' '
Some of the round and square towers and
other parts of the fortification of the old castle
survive. The towers, it should be noted, were
used as state prisons. The room in the palace,
later used as the council chamber, originally
contained the land registry (zemske desky),
an institution not unlike the Doomsday Book
394 Bohemia and the Cechs
in England at the time of William the Con-
queror. It was from this room that the impe-
rial eoimsellors were thrown in 1618, known
in history as the Defenestration of Prague, and
the immediate cause of the Thirty Years' War.
Near the castle is the cathedral church of
St. Vitus. It occupies the spot of one of the
original Christian churches in Prague. A small
Eomanesque church was begun during the
reign of Vaclav I (928-936), and completed
after his cruel murder. During the reign of
Spytihnev (1055-1061) a larger Romanesque
church was erected on the same spot. This
was destroyed during the subsequent civic tu-
mults of Prague, and the present Gothic edifice
was begun .during the regency of Charles. The
original architect was Matthew of Arras, whom
Charles had met at Avignon, and he was suc-
ceeded by Peter Arler and his son John. Its
construction was interrupted during the Hus-
site wars, but continued during the reign of
Vladislav II (1471-1516) under the direction of
the famous architect Benes of Loun. The
Thirty Years' War interrupted temporarily
the completion of the cathedral, and work was
not resumed until 1859. The parts already
completed were greatly damaged by the bom-
Hradcany 395
bardment of Prague by Frederick the Great
during the eighteenth century. A voluntary
society was organized fifty years ago for the
purpose of providing the funds necessary for
its restoration and completion. The work was
entrusted to Josef Kranner, and after his death
(1871) to Josef Mocker, who had so success-
fully restored the towers on the Charles bridge.
Since Mocker's death the work has been con-
tinued by Karel Hilbert.
The cathedral consists of little more than
a Gothic choir, which has two aisles and is sur-
rounded by an ambulatory and two series of
chapels. The monument of the Bohemian kings,
surrounded by a fine renaissance railing, is in
the centre. Beneath it repose the remains of
Charles IV, Vaclav IV, Ladislav Posthumus,
George of Podebrad, Ferdinand I, Maximil-
ian II, Rudolph II, and several Bohemian
queens and princes. The most notable of the
chapels is that which contains the remains of
St. Vaclav. The exterior wall of the chapel
is ornamented with mediaeval mosaics repre-
senting the Last Judgment. The interior is
sumptuously decorated with jasper, agates,
amethysts, carnelians, and other precious
stones and gilt borders. The sword, helmet,
396 Bohemia and the Oechs
mail-sMrt, and the imperial globe of St. Vaclav
are preserved in the chapel. The ring in the
chapel door is reputed to be the one that was
on the church door at Stara Boleslav that the
saint grasped the morning his brother mur-
dered him. The chapel of St. Simon contains
an old painting in the middle of which is the
head of Christ on a napkin which is revered
as a vera icon. In the chapel of St. John the
Baptist is a fine bronze chandelier brought as
booty from Milan in 1162, and said to have
come from the temple of Solomon, but it is
probably an early Byzantine work. In the
choir ambulatory is the striking tomb of St.
John of Nepomuk, " though it has more bar-
baric splendour than artistic value." Here are
kept the relics of the saint " whom the Jesuits
induced the Roman see * to make ' when they
were spiritual masters of Bohemia." At the
back of the high altar is the tomb of St. Vitus,
the patron saint of the cathedral.
Behind the cathedral is the church of St.
George, a heavy Eomanesque building with
two steeples of white masonry but considerably
modernized. It was founded originally in 973
by Mlada, a sister of Boleslav II. It contains
some interesting frescoes that date from the
Hradcany 397
eleventh century and the tombs of some of the
most ancient rulers of Bohemia and their con-
sorts, including that of St. Ludmila. The
equestrian statue of St. George and the dragon,
executed in 1372 by George and Martia of Clus-
senburk, is one of the finest ancient bronze
statues in Prague. It is a fountain figure, and
during the coronation festivities of the Bohe-
mian kings wine used to run from the dragon's
mouth pro bono publico.
Near-by is the imposing villa known as the
Belvedere. It is in the Italian renaissance
style and was erected by Ferdinand I in 1536
and presented to Queen Anna. There is a beau-
tiful colonnade on the ground floor which is
decorated with a rich frieze of foliage and some
interesting mythological reliefs. It was in the
hall of the Belvedere that Eudolph II made his
astronomical observations with Tycho Brahe,
the Danish astronomer. The hall has fourteen
frescoes (after cartoons by Ruben) illustrating
the history of Bohemia. There is a beautiful
view from the balcony of the Belvedere over-
looking the Old Town and the valley of the
Vltava.
Back of the cathedral is the Capuchin mon-
astery and the church of Loretto, the latter
398 Bohemia and the Cechs
an imitation of the celebrated Casa Santa of
Loretto. The buildings occupy the spot of the
residences of several of the Protestant nobles
who were exiled or beheaded after the battle
of White Mountain. The church, which was
erected by Catherine of Lobkovic, is in the late
renaissance and baroque styles of architecture,
and is adorned by a slender spire which sur-
mounts a sea of pantile roofs, chapels, and
cloisters. The treasury, the richest in Bohe-
mia, was augmented by gifts from members of
several families of the nobility. It contains a
Madonna and Child said to be the work of
Albrecht Diirer but more probably by Adrian
of Utrecht ; a valuable crucifix, the gift of Car-
dinal Harrach; a monstrance set with 6,580
diamonds, the gift of Countess Kolovrat, and
said to be worth a million dollars, and numer-
ous other treasures.
Near the Loretto church is the wealthy Pre-
monstratensian abbey of Strahov which was
foimded by King Vaclav in 1140. It was
greatly damaged during the Hussite wars but
was rebuilt during the seventeenth century,
together with the adjoining church of the Vir-
gin Mary, which has the largest organ in Bo-
hemia. The picture gallery contains Albrecht
SCHWAKZENBEKG PALACE.
Hradcany 399
Diirer's well-known rosary-feast, and paintings
by Lucas Cranach, Carlo Dolce, Guido Eeni,
Hans Holbein and the works of several Bohe-
mian painters. The library, which occupies a
striking baroque hall, contains a hundred thou-
sand volumes and nearly two thousand manu-
scripts, many of which are very rare, and some
fine specimens of eleventh century Bohemian
miniature painting. The library is rich in Ori-
ental manuscripts, incunables and early printed
Bibles, among which may be seen the priceless
utraquist Bible and the celebrated Bible of
Kralice. It also contains a copy of the beau-
tiful Bohemian Bible printed at Venice in 1506.
Most of the palaces of the ancient Bohemian
nobility are on the slopes of Hradcany or in the
adjoining Small Town (Mala Strana). These
are in the baroque and rococo styles of archi-
tecture and several are now used for imperial
or benevolent purposes. Among the palaces
may be named those of Counts Cernin, Thun,
Schwarzenberg, Martinic, and Waldstein. The'
latter is the most important palace in Prague.
"Waldstein, it will be remembered, was the pow-
erful commander of the Roman Catholic forces
during the Thirty Tears' War. He profited
enormously by the exile of the Bohemian no-
400 Bohemia and the Cechs
bility after the fatal battle of White Mountain,
and secured by purchase and as gifts from the
emperor tventy-three houses with spacious
gardens, -vfhich were demolished to make place
for the extensive gardens and the gigantic pal-
ace which he thought worthy of his fame and
power and the splendour of his court.
" In this palace," remarks Dr. Lubos Jefa-
bek, " assembled brilliant embassies of foreign
monarchs and princes, the officers of Wald-
stein's armies, the agents of the different po-
litical parties, and representatives of divers
courts and governments. For such visitors
rows of splendid rooms were prepared,
amongst them the large audience hall, taking
up two stories of the palace and ornamented
with beautiful frescoes, in which Waldstein
himself is represented as Mars in the panoply
of war." The numerous salons with furniture
of Waldstein 's time, the beautiful faience
stoves bearing the coats of arms of Waldstein
and of his relatives, the counts of Trcka and
Harrach, the fine collection of arms, and the
exquisite chapel of St. Vaclav, the oratory of
which is filled with valuable paintings, — all
these attest the artistic interests of " that
strange and elusive genius " whom Ferdinand
Hradcany 40i
once characterized as " tlie general of the
whole imperial armada and of the Black and
the North seas." " He was an independent
sovereign in all but name," writes a historian,
* ' with lands stretching far along the Baltic
coast. The magnificence of his mode of liviag
beggars all description. In his suite were two
hundred and twenty-five chamberlains and
stewards, pages, lackeys, and Jesuits; one
thousand horses were needed for their use. ' '
Waldstein's garden-refectory is the largest
in Europe, with its splendid loggia surpassing
the famous loggia dei Lanzi in Florence. It
is adorned with frescoes representing scenes
from the Trojan war, the heroes of which are
represented in costumes of the time of the
Thirty Years' War. In a parterre of the pal-
ace to the right of the loggia is a grotto with
artificial stalactites, which served as the bath-
room. A hidden staircase leads from the
grotto to the astrological observatory where
the distinguished military count passed many
nights with his astrologers who were trying
to forecast his future. " Now only the fine
architecture of the splendid palace remains,
but the stone-wrought ornamentations of its
porches, doors and windows impress our minds
402 Bohemia and the Cechs
with, some idea of the once-princely residence
which, up to this day, does honour to the mem-
ory of its brilliant founder." ^
The Cternm palace is now used as barracks
and one of the Kinsky palaces as the Bohemian
Ethnographic Museum. This museum is of
recent organization (1895) but it is of great
interest to the tourist and the student of Bohe-
mian customs and manners. Many of the re-
productions of the interiors of the cottages of
peasants in different parts of the kingdom are
excellently reproduced. There are also impor-
tant collections of furniture, costumes, em-
broideries, musical instruments, and other
articles illustrating the life of the Bohemian
peasants at different historic periods. The
Thun palace, formerly belonging to the Slavata
family, has an effective fagade with an orna-
mental porch supported by two gigantic eagles.
The palace of the Schwarzenbergs " rises like
a castle in a fairy-tale " above the lesser
houses of Mala Strana.
Above the trjezd is the Petfin, a summit six
hundred and fifty feet above the Vltava, on
the ridges of which may be seen parts of the
' JeMbek's Royal capital of Prague in " Guide to the Bohe-
mian section of the Austrian exposition at London, 1906."
Prague, 1906.
MALA STKANA (SMALL TOWN).
Hradcany 403
ancient famine-walls of Charles IV. These
walls were constructed under the direction of
the emperor-king to relieve the unemployed
during a period of famine. The view from the
summit of the Petfin (which may be ascended
by a funicular railway and an elevator) com-
prises in fine weather a radius of a hundred
miles. Not only Prague and the valley of the
Vltava, but most of the kingdom of Bohemia
may be seen. The view extends to the Snow
Dome of the Giant mountains in the north,
Most (Briix) and Teplice and the Ore moun-
tains in the west, the Bohemian Forest in the
south, and the Moravian highland in the east.
Some extremely picturesque houses, chiefly
in the renaissance style of architecture, may be
seen in the Small Town (Mala Strana). With
their red tUe roofs, fantastic dormer windows,
curious mansards, and grotesque statuettes,
they give a better notion of the mediaeval pe-
riod than is found elsewhere in Europe, with
the possible exception of Bruges and Nurem-
berg. Of special interest is the Steinicu, a
renaissance house with picturesque gables near
the Charles bridge. Another interesting house
is that known as " The three bells," which was
once fortified by walls, moats, and towers. The
404 Bohemia and the Cechs _
palace of the Kouaic family and tlie Eadecky
coffee-house in the same quarter have some
unusual architectural features.
The "gaudy church of St. Nicholas, built by
the Jesuits in the Italian style of architecture,
is in this vicinity. It has a gigantic cupola and
its over-decorated iuterior is in the baroque
style which characterizes the bad taste of
its builders. " The whole edifice, dome and
tower," remarks Dr. Lubos Jefabek, " is the
very embodiment of the proud and ostentatious
order of the Jesuits, who knew how to make
even art subservient to their further aims.
This dome and tower will ever be to us a vis-
ible symbol of the victorious Roman Catholic
anti-reformation, which tried to compensate, at
least by outward splendour, and by the promo-
tion of art, — which had always been cultivated
in our country, — for the heavy sacrifices and
losses endured by our nation during the bloody
strife that had to be fought for the final victory
of the Roman Catholic views over those of the
Protestant faith,"
a
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CHAPTER XXI
MODERN PBAGUE
Prague an interesting modem city — How it has been modified
by the recent national movement — The Bohemian National
Museum — Its numerous collections — Valuable books and
ancient manuscripts — The gradual of Fragile — The Bohe-
mian National Theatre — Destruction by fire of the first
building — The present home of drama and the opera —
The Rudolphinum — Picture gallery — Museum of industrial
art — Gallery of modem paintings — PubUo parks and gar-
dens — Monuments to national heroes — Educational in-
stitutions — Banks — Municipal street railway — Other mu-
nicipal institutions — Prague admirably administered —
Hdtels — Hallway connections — American and English
tourists.
Not only is Prague one of tlie most interest-
ing mediaeval cities of Europe — the German
geographer Humboldt ranked it with Oonstan-
tinople, Naples, and Lisbon as one of the four
most interesting — but it is also a handsome
modern city ; and the institutions founded here
during the last hundred years give added evi-
dence of the virility and artistry of the Bohe-
mian people. These institutions are certain to
interest American and English travellers no
less than the castles, cathedrals, monasteries,
405
406 Bohemia and the Cechs
and monuments of earlier historic periods de-
scribed in previous chapters.
While the foundation of a chair of Cech
languagS and literature in the university of
Prague in 1791 marks the first step in the great
national awakening at the capital, it was the
organization . of the Bohemian National Mu-
seum (Museum Kralovstvi Ceskeho) in 1818
that gave the movement its greatest impulse.
The society which directed the new organiza-
tion served as a rallying point for the young
patriots, and it made possible the publication
of their historical and linguistic studies; for,
as pointed out in the chapter on Bohemian lit-
erature, the first efforts of the patriots were
purely linguistic. They wisely foresaw that, in
order to revive historic traditions, the people
must be provided with a national idiom; and
the journal^ of the museum {Casopis Musea
Kralovstvi Ceskeho), which was started in 1827
under the editorship of Frantisek Palacky, was
the rostrum where the young patriots gave
expression to their aspirations.
The present monumental building which is
the home of the museum was begun in 1884
1 The journal of the museum is a rich repository on all sub-
i'ects relating to the kingdom of Bohemia, Jt is now edited by
)r. Cen^k Zfbrt.
Modern Prague 407
in the pure renaissance style. It occupies a
commanding position at the head of Vaclav
place and the site of the Horse gate (Konska
brana) of the Old Town. The approach is
guarded by statues representing the Vltava
and the Elbe, and the exterior of the building
is adorned with Corinthian columns, statues,
and bas-reliefs. The vestibule is richly dec-
orated. The building contains one hundred
rooms; the largest is the so-called Pantheon,
an imposing two-story hall which is used for
the meetings of the society of the Bohemian
museum, the Bohemian Academy of Letters,
Science and Art, and for great national fes-
tivals. It is embellished with life-size bronze
statues of some of the most celebrated persons
in Bohemian history, including John Amos
Komensky, Frantisek Palacky, and Karel Hav-
licek. The hall is decorated with historical
paintings representing important epochs in the
life of the nation, as " Foundation of the imi-
versity of Prague by Charles IV " by Brozik,
" Vaclav II founding the monastery of Zbras-
lav," " Komensky teaching at Amsterdam "
by Brozik, and " Libusa sending messengers
for Pfemysl " by 2enisek.
The museum contains a valuable collection
408 Bohemia and the Cechs
of manuscripts, early Bohemian books, engrav-
ings, maps, coins, seals, medals, musical instru-
ments, glassware and porcelain, arms and ar-
moury, National costumes, and mineralogical,
zoological, and botanical collections. Every
department of the historical and the natural
sciences is represented. The library has three
hundred thousand volumes (with free reading
rooms) and most of the reviews of the world
are to be found among the current publica-
tions. Among valuable autographs are those
of John Amos Komensky, John Hus, Augustus
Adolphus, and John 2izka. Among the inter-
esting ethnographic and historical collections
are two ancient Bohemian drug-shops, Mora-
vian and Silesian peasant rooms from the medi-
aeval period, and the flails used as weapons
during the Hussite wars. The collection of
early printed books is of great historical value ;
among such books are the Kronyka Trojanskd
(1468), the first book printed in the Bohemian,
the Kralice Bible and hymnals, the postUlas of
John Hus, John of Eokycan, and Peter Chel-
cicky, and graduals (hymnals) of the associa-
tions of choir singers (Literatske Sbory) of the
Hussite period. These hjTnnals were a pecul-
iarity of Bohemia. They were written on
Modern Prague 409
parchment, adorned with magnificent initials
and miniature paintings, and bound in costly
covers. They were the property of the choral
societies and were among the precious works
that perished at the hands of the Jesuit book-
destroyers after Bfla Hora. The few that are
now in existence are worth many times their
weight in gold. One of the most interesting is
the Gradual of Prague. It was executed in the
year 1572 and is a hymn " About the Saint
Master John Hus." The initial picture rep-
resents the beheading of John the Baptist and
the miniature paintings of the margin show
the burning of Hus at Constance, and give
other scenes from the life of the martyr-patriot.
After the museum, the Bohemian National
Theatre is the best exponent of the develop-
ment of the national spirit. Mention has al-
ready been made of the early efforts to intro-
duce the music drama at the capital. A num-
ber of patriots formed a society in 1850 for
the erection of a national theatre, and they pro-
jected a scheme for the collection of voluntary
funds for the purpose; but the absolutism of
the next ten years paralyzed their efforts. It
was not until 1862, that Dr. F. L. Eieger, the
director of the provisional Bohemian theatre,
410 Bohemia and the Cechs
revived the hope of the previous decade; and
it was not until 1881 that the dream was real-
ized. The buiding was planned by J. Zftek,
the first professor of architecture in the insti-
tute of technology at Prague, and it was opened
in June that year on the occasion of the mar-
riage of Prince Eudolph with the Princess Ste-
fanie of Belgium. Twelve performances were
given; but in August a fire, due to the negli-
gence of a plumber, completely destroyed the
magnificent edifice.
Appeals were again issued, and within a few
months volunteer offerings assured the imme-
diate rebuilding of the national temple of dra-
matic art. To the credit of the American Bohe-
mians, it should be noted that they made liberal
contributions to the rebuilding of the theatre,
as they had previously done in case of the orig-
inal structure. The new Bohemian National
Theatre (Kralovske zemske ceske a Narodni
divadlo), which was completed in November,
1883, is in the renaissance style, and was
planned' by Professor J. Schulz. The interior
sculptures are by Myslbek, Wagner, and
Schnirch, and the decorative paintings are by
Brozik, 2enisek, Marak, Hynais, Ales, Lieb-
scher, and Tulka. There is a beautiful foyer,
Modem Prague 4ii
royal box, and salon, and seats for two thou-
sand people. The theatre produces dramas,
operas, and ballets. Not only the works of
Bohemian artists are produced, but the master-
pieces of other Slavic and of foreign masters.
Its staff of singers, histrionic artists, and mu-
sicians is equal to the forces found in the best
national theatres of Europe. Some of the
national operas by Bohemian composers —
such as Smetana's " Libusa " and " Dalibor "
and Dvorak's " Eusalka " and " Svata Lud-
mila ' ' — can only be seen to advantage at the
national theatre. It is well worth a visit to
Prague solely to hear the great music dramas
of Smetana, Dvorak, Fibich, Kovafovic, and
Nedbal as they are here represented. And here
also may be seen the best plays of such poets
and dramatists as Zeyer, Vrchlicky, Vlcek,
Stolba, Bozdech, Subert, Jerabek, Simacek, and
Svoboda. There is also a German theatre at
Prague for opera and drama, and Bohemian
theatres at Vinohrady, Smichov, and Liben.
The Rudolphinum, erected in 1884 from plans
by Zitek and Schulz and named in honour of
the late Crown Prince Eudolph, is the modern
temple of Bohemian art. Besides the picture
gallery, it contains the national conservatory
412 Bohemia and the Cechs
of music and two concert halls, an art-indus-
trial museum, and tlie exhibits of the art union
held from April to June each year. It con-
tains, besides the collections of Dutch, Flemish,
French, Italian, and Spanish painters, the
works of little-known Bohemian artists. Here
are several paintings by Theodore of Prague,
the master of the Bohemian guild of painters
during the reign of Charles IV (1346-1378),
iacluding his Holy Family, which was a votive
offering of Archbishop Ocko of Vlasim. Among
later Bohemian artists represented are Bi'ozik,
Josef Manes, Cermak, Jansa, Svabinsky, Svo-
boda, Slavicek, Liska, and Myslbek. The Eu-
dolphinum has an exceptionally fine collection
of the engravings of Vaclav Hollar (1607-1677),
a Bohemian engraver who lived much in Eng-
land and Holland. During the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries Bohemia produced a
score of distinguished engravers.^
The museum of industrial art contains, be-
sides a library, extensive collections of works
in wrought iron, such as lamps, artistic locks,
box-clamps, and lattice work; ecclesiastical
carvings in wood, ivory, and mother-of-pearl;
' For an account of the work of the Bohemian engravers
See: Die Entwicklung der graphischen Kunst in den Bohmischen
Landem (Prague, 1909).
Modern Prague 413
tile stoves, carved chests, and furniture; stone-
ware, faience, porcelain, and glass; Oriental
carpets, textiles, goldsmith's work, enamels,
seals, and leather work. It also has some mod-
ern statuary by Bohemian sculptors.
There is in addition a modern gallery of
Bohemian paintings at Prague which has tem-
porary quarters at Stromovka place. It con-
tains numerous paintings by Mikulas Ales,
Vojtech Hynais, Jaroslav Cermak, Frantisek
2enisek, Jan Preissler, Antonin Slavicek, Max
Svabinsky, Joza trprka, Frantisek Simon, Jan
Novopacky, Josef Manes, Frantisek Kupka,
Felix Jenewein, Ludek Marold, and Frantisek
Urban. Among modern sculptors represented
are Stanislav Sucharda, Josef Myslbek, and
Frantisek Bflek. In addition to the annual
exhibition of artists in the Eudolphinum, there
is an exhibit of the Bohemian society of artists
in the Manes pavilion, near the Kinsky garden.
Prague has a considerable number of attract-
ive public parks. The royal gardens on Hrad-
cany were mentioned in the last chapter. The
Kralovska Obofa (Forest Park) is one of the
finest public parks at the capital. It contains
a great variety of trees, a chateau, and music
pavilions. The Petfin and the Kinsky gaxdens,
414 Bohemia and the Cechs
also mentioned in the last chapter, give charm-
ing views of the city and the valley of the
Vltava. Among parks forming a part of the
palaces o^ the Bohemian nobility may be men-
tioned the Waldstein, Lobkovic, and Fiirsten-
berg, and the Chotek garden at the Belvedere.
There is also a pretty island park on the 2ofm
in the Vltava. Mention should also be made of
the Havlickovy Sady and the Eiegrovy Sady
at Vinohrady. The Eudolph embankment and
the Frantisek quay are much used as prome-
nades. There are summer concerts in most of
the public parks in the afternoons and evenings
during the summer, and at the Bohemian Na-
tional House (Narodni Dum) in Vinohrady
concerts are given during the winter.
In a previous chapter on sculpture attention
was called to the fact that Bohemia was not
worthily represented with public monuments
to many of her great spiritual leaders and
national heroes. On the other hand the king-
dom is one vast forest of religious effigies, most
of which belong to the debased baroque period.
Measured by artistic standards they are in the
main veritable eye-sores. Even Prague is de-
ficient in statues to some of the great men of
the country. Monuments to John Hus and
Modern Prague 415
Frantisek Palacky are in course of construc-
tion, and among existing monuments may be
named the bronze statue of Charles IV by
Hahnel on the Old Town side of the Charles
bridge; the equestrian monument of Franti-
sek I under a Gothic canopy, by Josef Max;
the monument of Field-marshal Eadecky on a
shield borne by eight soldiers, by Josef and
Emmanuel Max; and the monument to Josef
Jungmann by Ludvik Simek. But John 2izka,
John Amos Komensky, Karel Havlicek, and a
score of patriots and heroes are not yet rep-
resented by public monuments in Prague.
Mention has already been made of such im-
portant educational institutions at the capital
as the Bohemian university and institute of
technology; the Naprstek industrial museum,
and the public libraries. The Bohemian Acad-
emy of Science, Art, and Literature has depart-
ments of philosophy, history, economic and
social science, mathematics, natural and phys-
ical science, philology, literature, art, and
music, and its publications contain many of the
researches of Bohemian scholars. There are
numerous clubs in the city, including an Anglo-
American club.
There are many fine modern bank buildings
416 Bohemia and the Cechs
at Prague, and the banks of the capital, it
should be remarked, are leading benefactors ia
benevolent and artistic enterprises. They made
important contributions to the Bohemian Na-
tional Theatre, and last year the Bohemian
Savings Bank gave $240,000 as an endowment
for the construction of cheap model dwelliags
for workmen. Another important bank is the
Central Savings Bank of Bohemia, with
branches at Brno, Cernovice, Lemberg, Triest,
Vienna, and New York.
Prague has a fine system of municipal street
railways which yield two million dollars annu-
ally in gross receipts, with a net profit to the
city of $300,000. The fare for short distances
is two and a half cents and for long distances
four cents. The city also operates the electric
light, gas, and water works; it has a savings
bank and an insurance bureau (against fire and
the breakage of glass) ; bath-houses, and nu-
merous other municipal institutions. And all
these are admirably and honestly admmistered.
The best talent that can be found is secured for
the heads of the various municipal depart-
ments, and prolonged apprenticeship in given
departments is essential for promotion. The
present lord mayor of Prague — Dr. Karel
STREET IN MODERN PRAGUE.
Modern Prague 417
Gros — for example, has a recognized rank
among students of economics and jurispru-
dence; but he served an apprenticeship as as-
sistant mayor before he was promoted to his
present office. American cities might study to
advantage the recent municipal developments
of Prague.
In closing it may be remarked that Prague
is excellently supplied with modern hotels and
all the other requirements of the traveller, and
that the tariffs are not immoderate. The city
is the centre of the railway traffic of the king-
dom, with lines going to Bavaria, Saxony,
Prussia, and Austria. There are direct train
connections with Dresden, Carlsbad, Marien-
bad, Nuremberg, Brno, Vienna, and the towns
of northern Bohemia; also river-steamers on
the Vltava. The United States, England, Ger-
many, and most of the leading nations of the
world have consulates at Prague. American
and English tourists are visiting the city in
increasing numbers during the summer season,
and automobilists are beginning to discover
Bohemia. But Prague is still altogether too
little known by the great army of American and
English tourists that visit Munich, Dresden,
and Carlsbad annually.
CHAPTER XXII
CARLSBAD AND MAKIENBAD
Spa resorts in western Bohemia — Geological structure of the
Ore mountains — Deposits of glacial ages — Nature of the
thermal springs — The sprudel waters of Carlsbad — Some
of the famous springs — Foundation of the town by Charles
IV — Inundations of the Tepl valley — Diseases treated
at Carlsbad — Municipal control of the springs — Bathing
estabUshments — Attractions of the town — Ethnic types
represented among the summer guests — A favourite resort
of royalty — Shipment of the waters — Carlsbad also an
industrial centre — " Beware of shop-keepers " — Marien-
bad — Springs and bath-houses — The abbey of Tepl ^-
Franzensbad — Nature of the waters — The moor-baths —
Teplitz.
Along the foot-MUs of the Ore mountains in
western Bohemia — a part of the kingdom al-
most exclusively occupied by Germans — there
are innumerable mineral springs which attract
numerous guests each season to such well-
known resorts as Carlsbad, Marienbad, Fran-
zensbad, and Teplitz. The thermal waters are
supposed to be especially efficacious for stom-
ach disorders, liver complaint, gout, and obes-
ity; and several hundred thousand " cure
guests " — mainly Jews — take the treatment
during the summer months. The late Samuel
418
Carlsbad and Marienbad 419
L. Clemens (Mark Twain) has not inappropri-
ately characterized these resorts as " appetite
cures."
In the earlier geological ages a portion of
the Ore mountains occupied a table-land that
was later depressed and formed lakes. This
is represented to-day by the Falkenau-Carls-
bad brown coal basin. Adjoining this basin is
the elevated region known as the Carlsbad hills,
and here are found warm sprudel springs. The
Carlsbad hills are the remains of eruptive up-
heavals which may have originated by the
breaking out of magmas. Three principal ele-
ments enter into their geological structure:
The oldest strata is granite; the next is rep-
resented by the basin deposits of the tertiary
period, and the youngest by the spring deposits.
The granite crumbles away with comparative
ease, and in its lodes are found veins of
pedmatite, red feldspar, and hornstone. The
quartzite of the tertiary epoch represents the
second strata, and the youngest consists of
spring-ochre, sprudel-sinter, and sprudel-stone.
Ferric-oxide is the chief element of the spring-
ochre, and is found in all the Carlsbad thermal
springs that have a temperature below 122°
Fahrenheit. Above that temperature the ochre
420 Bohemia and the Cechs
does not dissolve but forms stalactite masses.
The sprudel-sinter forms the fibrous coloured
mass that causes the petrifaction of objects
placed in the springs, while the sprudel-stone
is a compact fibrous rock mass and consists of
crystallized carbonate of lime with varying
quantities of ferric-hydrate.
It is from such geological formations that
the thermal springs of Carlsbad take their rise.
The hottest of these springs is called the Spru-
del (springer) which governs the whole thermal
territory of Carlsbad. All the other springs
differ merely in their chemical combinations —
chiefly in the percentage of iron and in the free
and combined carbonic acid absorbed — and in
temperature. As the water of the Sprudel
rises to the surface its temperature is 165°
Fahrenheit. Its chief elements are sulphate of
soda, bicarbonate of lime, carbonate of soda,
a little common salt, and a trace of iron. It
yields six hundred and sixty gallons of water
a minute. The spring is covered by an im-
posing colonnade erected in 1879.
The Francis Joseph spring, with a tem-
perature of 147° Fahrenheit, ranks next to the
Sprudel as the hottest of the smaller springs.
The Emperor Charles sflring has a tempera-
Carlsbad and Marienbad 421
ture of 107° Fahrenheit. This is the spring
that the emperor-king is supposed to have dis-
covered in 1368. The discovery led to the
founding of the town, and Charles IV erected
a palace on the spot now marked by his statue
in the city park. The coolest of the thermal
springs has a temperature of 73° Fahrenheit.
There are also two cold springs with tempera-
ture of from 44° to 52°.
Carlsbad has been a favourite resort since
the time of Charles IV. He resided here at
different periods, and his immediate successors
looked upon the place with favour. The town
was entirely destroyed by fire in 1604 and
rebuilt by Rudolph II. It was a centre of Prot-
estantism and suffered greatly during the
counter-reformation. The town-council and
citizens at first refused to renounce their faith,
and Ferdinand II withdrew all the privileges
the town had enjoyed. Upon the acceptance
of the Eoman Catholic religion in 1628 these
privileges were restored.
Carlsbad is situated in the narrow vaUey of
the Tepl river, an insignificant stream for the
greater part of the year ; but occasionally after
a continuous rainfall or a sudden thaw follow-
ing a heavy fall of snow the stream becomes
422 Bohemia and the Cechs
a torrent, overflows its banks, and causes ter-
rible devastation. In the great inundations of
1582, 1636, 1655, 1703, 1806, 1821, and 1890, not
only were important parts of the town des-
troyed, but many lives were sacrificed. There
was another great fire in 1759 when almost the
whole place was destroyed.
The waters of Carlsbad are reputed to cure
or relieve some forty different diseases, among
which may be named diseases of the stomach,
intestines, liver, kidneys, bladder, and spleen;
obesity, diabetes, gout and the uric-acid dia-
thesis; swelling and chronic inflammation of
the prostate gland and diseases of the female
sexual organs, and skin diseases, chronic rheu-
matism, neuralgia and sciatica. The water is
taken internally and used as a bath. At an
early hour of the morning — usually from five
to six o'clock — the " cure-guests " repair to
the different springs to be served with glasses
of the warm water.
The springs are free, but the municipality
imposes a spa tax and a music tax on all stran-
gers who remain a week or longer. These taxes
are levied in accordance with the social stand-
ing of the visitors. Those of the highest social
class pay $4, those of the intermediate class,
Carlsbad and Marienbad 423
$2.40, and those who belong to the class known
as the common people pay $1.60. The music
taxes range from $6.80 to $2.20 on the same
basis. Army and navy officers, government
officials, doctors and surgeons, and " all per-
sons presenting authentic certificates of pov-
erty " are exempted from the spa and music
taxes.
There are numerous magnificent bathing es-
tablishments, such as the Kaiserbad, the
Elizabethbad, the Kurhaus, the Neubad, and
the Sprudelbad, where the prices for baths
vary from four dollars to forty cents each.
The baths are given in a dozen different forms,
including sprudel water baths, mud baths, car-
bonic acid baths, mud-compress baths, electric
water baths, electric light baths, Russian steam
baths, etc. To attain desirable results visitors
are urged to remain from three to six weeks.
Rest and reduced diet form important features
of the " cures," and Carlsbad is abundantly
supplied with all those agencies which are cal-
culated to divert the mind and enable the or-
ganism to overcome fatigue. There are thea-
tres and concerts, tennis courts and golf links,
Hebrew, Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, and
Protestant churches, parks, promenades, and
424 Bohemia and the Cechs
numerous beautiful trails and roadways among
the near-by Mils and mountains.
Carlsbad bas an elevation of 1,165 feet above
sea-level,»and the town is surrounded by numer-
ous pine-clad peaks that rise above the narrow
and winding Tepl valley. The Hammer, the
Deerleap, Francis Joseph's peak, the Aberg,
King Otto's height, the Three-Cross mount,
and the Echo peak command charming views
and are easily accessible. The Engelhaus, on
a huge phonolite rock; the Three Oaks, ex-
tolled in the poetry of Korner ; Hans Heiling's
rock, a wild and romantic spot, and the lofty
Keilberg (4,053), the highest peak in the Ore
mountains, are all within easy reach of the
town.
One who is interested in the study of ethnic
types will find Carlsbad a place of deep inter-
est. The Israelites of the four-corners of the
globe congregate here in large numbers during
the summer; and the picturesque — but not
over-clean — costume of gaberdined Jews from
Galieia, Silesia, Poland, and Eussia gives a
distinct flavour to the variegated racial stocks
represented among the " cure guests." Gen-
tiles in lesser numbers from most of the coun-
tries of Europe, with a sprinkling from Amer-
Carlsbad and Marienbad 425
ica, and European royalty constitute the bal-
ance of the clientele of Carlsbad.
The visits of Charles IV during the four-
teenth century gave the place distinction. Dur-
ing the sixteenth century it was visited by
Archduke Ferdinand of Austria and Elector
Augustus of Saxony. Albert of Waldstein,
' ' with princely splendour and numerous suite, ' '
and the Elector Augustus II of Saxony were
the most important royal residents during the
seventeenth century. Peter the Great of Rus-
sia, Frederick the Great of Prussia, Prince
Eugene of Savoy, the Empress Maria Theresa,
the Empress Elizabeth Christine, Leibnitz, and
Gothe favoured Carlsbad with visits during the
eighteenth century. In recent years the em-
perors of Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hun-
gary, the kings of Holland, Bavaria, and
Greece, as well as other notables, have taken
the Carlsbad treatment.
Before 1844 it was forbidden to export the
water under pain of severe punishment. Ship-
ment abroad, it was assumed, would decrease
the number of summer visitors to the city. The
change of policy, however, has greatly increased
the number of summer guests; and there is
an annual shipment to-day of two and a quarter
426 Bohemia and the Cechs
millions of bottles of the water and one hun-
dred and twenty-five thousand pounds of the
salts. Besides these there are considerable ex-
ports of sprudel-lye for bathing purposes, spru-
del-lozenges — a mixture of the sprudel-salt
and sugar — for certain forms of indigestion,
and sprudel-soap.
Carlsbad (Karlovy Vary, in the Bohemian
language) has a permanent population of fif-
teen thousand. Aside from the care of the
summer guests and the manufacture of sprudel
products, the city has porcelain and other in-
dustries. It is also the clearing house for an
important commercial district. The American
consul at Carlsbad informed me that the ex-
ports to the United States alone exceeded a
million and a half dollars a year. The three
largest items of shipment to our country are
chinaware, $600,000, hops, $260,000, and musi-
cal instruments, $120,000.
' ' Beware of shop-keepers " is a bit of advice
that may be welcomed by American and Eng-
lish tourists who are unfamiliar with the laws
of the country. Like all resort places Carlsbad
has an interminable number of attractive
shops; but this incident came to my notice
last summer: A prominent American citizen,
Carlsbad and Marienbad 427
his wife and daughter were loitering through
the city and stopping now and then to look at
the trinkets exposed to view in the shops. A
Polish Jew observing them before his shop
window urged them to enter the store and per-
mit him to show them some of his jewelry.
They assured him that they had no notion of
buying, but he insisted that it would give him
pleasure to show them what he had. No
purchases were made, and they departed.
Subsequently several hundred dollars' worth
of jewelry, with a bill for the same, was sent
to the hotel of the party in question, but not
accepted. Nothing more was heard of the mat-
ter until the evening before the contemplated
departure of the Americans. Then an officer
appeared at the hotel and served notice of a
legal process. The trial consumed some days,
and the decision of the local justice was in
favour of the plaintiff. In spite of the sworn
evidence of the defendant, his wife, and daugh-
ter, that no purchase had been made, the court
ruled that the fact that they had entered the
store and priced the articles was evidence of
the intent to purchase, and that the shop-keeper
having sworn that he had made an entry of the
alleged purchase in his account book immedi-
428 Bohemia and the Oechs
ately after the party left the store, constituted
a lawful purchase in accordance with the law
of the country !
Marienbad (Marianske Lazne) is the crea-
tion of the past century. It has an elevation
of a little more than two thousand feet above
sea-level, and is enclosed on three sides by
pine-clad hills. Gothe described it in the fol-
lowing sentence : ' ' Magnificent quarters, civil
landlords, good society, pretty girls, lovers of
music, pleasant evening parties, delicious food,
new distinguished acquaintances, old acquaint-
ances revived, light atmosphere."
The springs at Marienbad, which are the
property of the rich neighbouring abbey of
Tepl, contain Glauber's salt and are cold, other-
wise they resemble those at Carlsbad. The
Cross spring, the Wood spring, and the Ferdi-
nand spring are used principally for drinking
purposes; and the chalybeate waters of the
Charles spring and the Ambrose spring, to-
gether with the strong chalybeate and saline
waters of the Ferdinand spring, are used for
bathing. The Eudolph spring is strongly im-
pregnated with carbonic acid.
There are several fine bath-houses for mud,
pine-cone, alkaline, and acid baths; numerous
Carlsbad and Marienbad 429
handsome hotels, synagogues, churches, and
villas, and many lovely walks in the pine for-
ests on the surrounding hills. Among the
near-by heights, which afford splendid views
of the Pine mountains, the Bohemian For-
est, the Ore mountains, and the surrounding
country, are Queen Caroline's summit, Fred-
erick William's summit, and the basaltic Pod-
horn.
The wealthy abbey of Tepl, to which the
springs at Marienbad belong, is not distant.
It contains a library of sixty thousand volumes
and has interesting zoological and mineralog-
ieal collections. The freely modernized Ro-
manesque church connected with the abbey
dates from the year 1193 and contains several
interesting mural paintings. The deer park of
Prince Metternich and the ferric acid springs
of Konigswart are not far from Marienbad.
Franzensbad (Frantiskovy Lazne) is on a
plain at the base of the Ore mountains, the Pine
mountains, and the Bohemian Forest. It has
twelve chalybeate and saline mineral springs
impregnated with carbonic acid gas, and ex-
tensive mud and gas baths. As at Carlsbad,
the springs and bathing establishments are the
property of the municipality. Although lo-
430 Sohemia and the Cechs
cated on a plain, the temperature during the
summer is moderate and the air is light.
The twelve springs at Franzensbad are
abundant »in their yield and serve both for
drinking and bathing purposes. The Francis
spring has been known since the sixteenth cen-
tury. It is an alkaline chalybeate spring and
contains Glauber's salt. The harmonious rela-
tion of its carbonic acid, salts of soda, and iron
makes its water highly digestible and gives it
durability in transportation. The Salt spring,
the Wood spring, the Louisa spring, and the
cold sprudel spring are also popular for cura-
tive purposes.
The moor-baths are a special feature of Fran-
zensbad. The town has a moor tract nearly
three miles long, half a mile wide, and three
feet deep. The moor-earth is a thick, spongy
mass of decomposed roots and shrubs that has
resulted from the turf-forming process. It is
saturated with salts from the mineral water.
It is dug from the marsh, piled into heaps and
subjected to oxidation through the action of
the atmosphere upon it. This converts the sul-
phur into sulphuric acid, the metallic sulphides
into sulphates, and the iron pyrites into the
protoxide of iron. "When dried and ground for
Carlsbad and Marienbad 431
the bath it has a dark colour and a strong acid
reaction. These baths are supposed to exert
a strong influence on the nervous system and
on the circulation generally.
As at Carlsbad, the municipality of Franz-
ensbad presents a long list of diseases which
the springs and the baths are supposed to cure,
with this difference — special emphasis is
placed on the diseases of women and on nerv-
ous diseases. Carlsbad waters do not pretend
to help cases of diseases of the nervous system.
On the other hand Franzensbad makes a spe-
cialty of functional neuroses such as chorea,
neurasthenia, spinal atrophy, and the neural-
gias. It also claims much for its cures in the
matter of maladies of the sexual organs, heart,
and intestines. It frequently serves as an
" after-cure" for those who have been under
treatment with salt water and iodine baths at
Carlsbad and Marienbad.
The town has beautiful parks, bathing estab-
lishments, and public buildings. There are
music and dance halls, tennis courts and golf
links, and Hebrew, Greek Orthodox, Eoman
Catholic, and Protestant churches. Walks
through the forest parks and into the neigh-
bouring hills are numerous and pretty. Fran-
432 Bohemia and the Cechs
zensbad, like Carlsbad and Marienbad, has a
large export trade in the waters of its mineral
springs.
Teplitz {Teplice), which lies on a broad plain
between the Ore mountains and the Bohemian
Forest, has some of the oldest thermal springs
in Europe. They have been known since the
year 762 and are almost entirely free from min-
eral ingredients. They vary in temperature
from 97° to 120° Fahrenheit, and are supposed
to be highly efficacious in cases of gout, obesity,
rheumatism, stiffness of joints, neuralgia, nerv-
ous diseases, and disorders consequent on syph-
ilis. The waters are taken internally and much
use is made of the baths — thermal spring, car-
bonic acid, electric light, and mineral moor
baths. Teplitz also makes a specialty of milk,
whey, and kefyr cures.
There are the customary conveniences found
at the other well-known spa resorts in western
Bohemia — parks, concert halls, promenades,
bathing establishment, and Hebrew, Roman
Catholic, and Protestant churches. As at
Carlsbad and Marienbad the Jews constitute
the majority of the " cure guests." Teplitz
is an important industrial centre and the city
has a population of twenty-five thousand inhab-
Carlsbad and Marienbad 433
itants. The neighbouring mountains are rich
iu gneiss, porphyry, and granite, and quantities
of porcelain and earthenware are manufactured
in this section.
. CHAPTER XXIII
OTHEB BOHEMIAN TOWNS
Provincial towns of historic interest — Tdbor and the Taborites
— BudSjovice — Hlubokd castle — Krumlov and the Bohe-
mian Forest — Towns on the upper Vltava — Pf ibram —
Husinec — Splfidk — Eisenstein — Domazlice and the Chods
— Towns east of Prague — ICutnA Hora — The Sedlee
monastery — ,Cdslav and John Zizka — Pardubice — Pod^-
brady the birthplace of Bohemia's only Protestant king —
Kr^lov6 Hradec — Ji6fn and its numerous interests — The
rocks of Prachov — Sedmihorky — Tumov — Roudnice —
Litomfifice
Befobe passing to accounts of the margra-
vate of Moravia and the duchy of Silesia, brief
descriptions must be given of a few provincial
towns of special interest to the tourist. The
royal castle of Karluv Tyn, one of the finest
mediaeval monuments of Bohemia, has already
been described. Among the numerous interest-
ing excursions that may be taken from Prague
is that to Budejovice and the neighbouring
towns in the Bohemian Forest. The ruins of
a dozen castles may be seen on the heights
along the banks of the Sazava, but the first
town of special interest to the traveller is the
ancient stronghold of the Taborites.
434
other Bohemian Towns 435
Tabor, situated on an eminence above the
Vltava, was founded by one of the great relig-
ious reform parties at the outbreak of the Hus-
site wars. It was strongly fortified by John
2izka, and was the centre of military strife
for several decades. Some of the walls of the
old fortifications are still in existence, and the
town has numerous interesting buildings and
monimaents. The town hall, which was finished
in 1521, contains statuettes of John 2izka, Pro-
kop the Great, John Hus, and Jerome of
Prague, and near-by is a statue of 2izka by
Strachovsky. In the Ctibor house, with its rich
ornamentations, is preserved one of the stone
tables at which the Taborites used to partake
of the communion in both kinds in the open air.
Other memorials furnish visible connections
with one of the most stirring periods in Bohe-
mian history.
Budejovice (Budweis) is located on a plain
at the foot-hills of the Bohemian Forest. It
has a beautiful public square surrounded by
arcades, a cathedral with a detached tower, a
Gothic church (St. Mary's) dating from the
thirteenth century, an interesting Dominican
cloister, a fine old town hall, and a historical
museum. It is the seat of a bishop ; has sev-
436 Bohemia and the Cechs
eral secondary and special schools, a Bohemian
opera house, and numerous industrial plants
for the manufacture of beer, earthenware, and
lead-pencils.
Near the town, on a rocky summit overlook-
ing the Vltava, is the Hluboka palace, the prop-
erty of the Schwarzenberg family. It was
founded in the thirteenth century, and is a
replica of Windsor castle in England. It has
eleven turrets, one hundred and forty halls,
and a picture gallery and library, both of con-
siderable value. The deer park, with the his-
toric hunting lodge of Obora, and the ruins
of Hradek, one of the small hunting castles
erected by Charles IV, are in the immediate
vicinity of Hluboka (Frauenberg).
An interesting excursion from Budejovice is
to the town of Krumlov, picturesquely situated
on the Vltava, and well up the slopes of the
Bohemian Forest. Not only has it a beautiful
location, but the connection of the town with
the history of Bohemia since the twelfth cen-
tury is significant. The stately castle of Krum-
lov, on a great rock overlooking the town and
the river valley, was the foundation of the
Vitkovici, one of the most ancient noble fam-
ilies in the kingdom. It passed into the pos-
HLTJBOKA CASTLE.
other Bohemian Towns 437
session of the Rosenberg family in 1290, and
was inherited by its present owners — the
Sohwarzenbergs — in 1719. The numerous
buildings of the Krumlov castle date from
different periods and contain more than three
hundred apartments, with numerous large halls,
chapels, libraries, and picture galleries. The
chapel of St. George, in tlie Gothic style of the
fourteenth century, is of most interest. In a
subterranean passage to the castle is a dungeon
where Vaclav IV suffered imprisonment for a
period at the hands of the dissatisfied Bohe-
mian nobility.
In the vicinity of Krumlov are the Klet
(Schoniger), with an altitude of 3,555 feet and
commanding a beautiful view of the Bohe-
mian Forest; Zlata Koruna, with a splendid
church and a Cistercian monastery founded by
Pfemysl Otakar II in thanksgiving for a great
victory against the Magyars in 1260; the pil-
grimage-resort of Gojau, the Oberammergau
of the Bohemian Forest, where Passion plays
have been performed periodically for many
years ; the old town of Eozmberk, with a thir-
teenth century Gothic church and a great castle
perched on a rocky cliff overlooking the
town, and' the picturesque Certova Stena
438 Bohemia and the Cechs
(Devil's wall), a narrow gorge in the mountain
through which the Vltava rushes with great
fury.
An interesting journey to another part of
the Bohemian Forest is to Domazlice and Eisen-
stein through Plzen. The valley of the Mze is
followed and the ruins of many ancient castles
may be seen on the surrounding hills. The
castle of Kfivoklat occupies an important place
in the romantic history of Bohemia. Here for
a time resided Blanche of Valois, the beautiful
Philippine Welser, the wife of Archduke Fer-
dinand, John Augusta, one of the early bishops
of the Bohemian Brethren, Count William of
Lobkovic, and many other distinguished per-
sonages. Not all of them, however, were will-
ing guests, as the records of the underground
dungeons testify.
The mining town of Pribram, with its val-
uable silver and lead mines, employs five thou-
sand workmen with an annual yield of more
than twenty tons of pure silver. It has two
of the deepest mining shafts in Europe; that
of St. Vojtech is 3,660 feet deep and the Mary
shaft 3,694 feet. The mine has been worked
since the early mediaeval period. A mile to the
east of the town rises Svatd Hora (Holy Moun-
other Bohemian Towns 439
tain), a famous shrine of the Virgin Mary, and
the resort of multitudes of pilgrims.
From Pribram to Eisenstein some of the
most picturesque villages of the Bohemian For-
est are passed — Cimelice, with the neighbour-
ing castle of Orlik; the busy industrial town
of Pisek, with its ancient castle, churches, and
bridges; Husinec, the birthplace of Bohemia's
great martyr-patriot; Mount Boubin, with an
elevation of 4,470 feet, and commanding an
extensive view, and the picturesque pine-cov-
ered peak of Spicak, near the summit of which
may be seen a half-dozen beautiful mountain
tarns, including the Devil's lake and the Black
sea.
Eisenstein, at an altitude of 2,375 feet above
sea-level, is the pass on the summit of the range
and marks the boundary between Bohemia and
Bavaria. The quartz and granite mountains
are richly forested with pine and beech trees
and dotted with numerous lakelets. The Javor
(Arber), the highest peak in the Bohemian
Forest, towers above the town, and several
other peaks in the vicinity — the Pancir, the
Mustek, and the Brennet — add to the pictur-
esque effect of the sombre village that guards
the mountain pass.
440 Bohemia and the Cechs
The most interesting vUlage of the Bohemian
Forest, however, is Domazlice, the centre of
the Chods, the lineal descendants of the ancient
Bohemian borderers. They have preserved to
the present day the manners, custom, and dress
of the mediaeval guardians of the borderland.
There are some attractive old houses in the
town, and near-by is the lofty Cerchov, the
summit of which gives an excellent survey of
the surrounding country. On the Hradek there
is a fine statue of Kozina, the peasant who was
executed in 1695 for defending the freedom of
his townsmen against the rapacious encroach-
ments of the nobility. Domazlice has been the
scene of a number of important battles. Em-
peror Henry III, of Grermany, met a crushing
defeat here in his efforts to invade Bohemia in
the year 1040. And it was here that the mag-
nificent Eoman Catholic crusading army, led by
Cardinal Julian, the Duke of Saxony, the King
of Bavaria, and the Duke of Brandenburg was
vanquished by Prokop Holy and his valiant
Hussites in 1431.
East of Prague there are a half-dozen places
that retain many mediaeval features and have
numerous interesting historical associations.
Many ruins of ancient castles may be seen from
A CHOD AT DOMAZLICE.
other Bohemian Towns 441
the railway that follows for some distance the
river valley of the Sazava. The little town of
Sazava is of historic importance because it was
the site of an ancient Slavic abbey that was the
earliest home of Bohemian letters. Kolin, on
the Elbe, played a relatively important role in
the early history of the country, and it was
here that Marshal Daun defeated Frederick
the Great and his Prussian forces the 18th of
June, 1757.
Kutna Hora (Kuttenberg), so often referred
to in these pages, is, after Prague, the most
significant city in the kingdom from a purely
historic standpoint. It was frequently the
residence of the Bohemian kings, and its well-
known silver mines (no longer operated) made
it a place of considerable importance. Its
imposing — but unfinished — cathedral of St.
Barbara was begun in the fifteenth century
under the direction of the famous Bohemian
architects Matej Rejsek and Benes of Loun, but
in consequence of the religious wars it was left
unfinished. The interior is decorated with an-
cient frescoes and it has exquisitely carved
choir-stalls. Other interesting churches are St.
James, St. John of Nepomuk, St. Mary, and
the Trinity.
442 Bohemia and the Cechs
The money of Bohemia was long minted at
Kutna Hora, and the Vlassky Dvur, the official
residence of the superintendent of the mint, is
a handsome building that dates from the thir-
teenth century. It was frequently the resi-
dence of the Bohemian kings, and the national
parliament sometimes held its sessions here.
It is now the town hall. The Kamenny Dum,
the ancient town hall, with its handsome Gothic
gables, has been transformed into an interest-
ing municipal museum. The town has a worthy
monument to the memory of Karel Havlicek,
the patriot and journalist, who suffered exUe
during the era of absolutism in Austria.
At Sedlec is the suppressed Cistercian mon-
astery now used as a tobacco factory, and fur-
nishing employment to three thousand people,
chiefly women. The Gothic church of St. Mary,
which originally formed a part of the monas-
tery, is the largest ecclesiastical structure in
Bohemia. It is two hundred and fifty feet long
and has five naves. The mortuary chapel, with
earth brought from Jerusalem, is decorated
with human skulls and bones. Even the chan-
delier and altar-pieces are made from these
gruesome objects.
Five miles from Kutna Hora is the ancient
other Bohemian Towns 443
town of Caslav, once the resting place of the
remains of John 2izka ; but during the counter-
reformation his tomb was violated and the con-
tents desecrated and scattered. The church of
St. Peter and St. Paul, with its lofty spire, was
the original tomb of the Hussite military leader.
The citizens of Caslav iu 1880 erected a statue
in his honour in the market place. The town
has a fine Protestant church, a historical mu-
seum with numerous interesting Hussite relics,
and a Bohemian theatre.
Pardubice, a prosperous industrial town
with breweries, distilleries, sugar refineries,
and iron foundries, is located on a plain near
the junction of the Elbe and the Loucna. It
was an important mediaeval town, and a few
ancient monuments survive, among which are
the Zelena Brana, one of the old gates of the
city, and the ruins of the Kuneticka Hora, a
castle located on a huge basaltic rock in the
suburbs of the town. Large horse fairs are
held periodically at Pardubice.
Podebrady, on the Elbe, was the original
residence of the counts of Kunstat and Pode-
brad, and it was here that George of Podebrad,
the Protestant king of Bohemia, was born. An
equestrian statue of the great king, by the
444 Bohemia and the Gechs
sculptor Schnirch, adorns tlie market place of
the town. Several of the Bohemian rulers —
notably Eudolph II and Maria Theresa —
made Fodebrady their residence for prolonged
periods. The castle of Podebrady was sold in
1839 to a wealthy G-reek banker, whose grand-
daughter, the Princess Ypsilanti, married
Prince Hohenlohe-Schillingsfiirst, the present
owner. The town is to-day the centre of the
sugar industry of eastern Bohemia.
Kralove Hradec (Koniggratz), on the Elbe,
was until quite recently a fortified city, and it
was near here that the battle of Sadova was
fought the 3rd of July, 1866, between the Aus-
trians and the Prussians. It has a mediaeval
cathedral, an episcopal palace, a chapel con-
taining a relic of St. Clement, and the lofty
Bila Vez (White tower), two hundred and
twenty feet high, which contains a ponderous
bell. It is a busy industrial town to-day and
produces quantities of musical instruments for
military brass bands. It was the birthplace
of Tomek, the historian of Prague ; and in the
neighbouring town of Libice, St. Vojtech (Adal-
bert), the second bishop of Bohemia, was born.
Jicin, located in the foot-hills of the Griant
mountains, is perhaps the most interesting pro-
other Bohemian Towns 445
vincial town in Bohemia. It is thoroughly
mediaeval in character and ought to delight the
heart of the artist and the antiquarian. It was
the capital of the estates of Albert of Wald-
steia ; and the old square and most of the pub-
lic buildings have undergone slight alteration
during the past three centuries. This is not
to say that the place is not progressive. It has
a busy trade, and was the first town in Bohemia
to erect a statue to the memory of John
Hus. It also has monuments to John Amos
Komensky, the educator and religious reformer,
and to Karel Havlicek, the journalist and
statesman. A town of ten thousand inhabit-
ants, with monuments to such patriots and
spiritual leaders, is entitled to first-rank among
the progressive places in the kingdom. Some
remains of the ancient fortifications may be
seen; and the old town hall, the fine Valdice
gate, the Waldstein castle, numerous examples
of ancient domestic architecture, and the ar-
caded 2izka public square give Jicm a dis-
tinctly mediaeval aspect. Among fine modern
buildings are the Palacky house, which is the
home of the local Sokols, several educational
institutions, and mmierous modern private vil-
las. The broad linden driveway, with prom-
446 Bohemia and the Cechs
enades on either side, and flanked by four rows
of handsome linden trees, extends for two miles
from the town to the ruin of the Knmburg
castle. This magnificent avenue has few equals
anywhere.
In the neighbourhood of Jicin are the curi-
ous rocks of Prachov which recall similar for-
mations in Saxon Switzerland. They are com-
posed of soft sand-stone and have assumed
most fantastic shapes as the result of the action
of rain and wind. Some of them resemble cas-
tles, others gigantic skulls, and others huge
bishop's mitres. One of the formations sug-
gests the Madonna and Child, while a neigh-
bouring crag resembles a lamb. In some places
the rocks have been undermined by the water,
thus forming numerous clefts and caverns.
Between Jicin and Turnov is the hydropathic
health-resort of Sedmihorky (Wartenberg),
one of the most charming mountain resorts in
Bohemia. Above the resort are the ruins of
one of the colossal castles of Waldstein (1,276
feet) and the chateau and park of Hruba Skala
(1,194 feet). The sandstone rocks near Sed-
mihorky are remarkably curious and present
numerous grotesque forms not unlike those of
Prachov already described. A short distance
other Bohemian Towns 447
to the east of the resort is the twin-peak which
contains the ruin of the castle of Trosky, which
withstood so many assaults during the troub-
lous mediaeval times.
The busy industrial town of Turnov is a few
miles west of Sedmihorky. It is the centre of
the garnet industry and has a number of fine
modern buildings, including the home of the
local Sokols, bank, and schools; also a beau-
tiful river park along the banks of the Jicera
(Iser). At Stara Boleslav is a castle after a
Roman model that dates from the year 930. It
was here that Vaclav I (afterwards canonized)
was murdered by his brother Boleslav.
Eoudnice and Litomefice are situated on the
Elbe and may be visited on the way to Prague
from Dresden. In Eoudnice (Kaudnitz) is
the castle of the principal branch of the Lob-
kovic family. It is a huge building with nearly
two hundred rooms and contains a library of
great historical value and a picture gallery and
a museum, both of considerable interest. It
was in this castle that Col di Rienzi, " the last
of the tribunes," was confined during the reign
of Charles IV. The fiip Mountaia, a basaltic
cone 1,325 feet in height, is near Eoudnice.
According to national legends, this was the
448 Bohemia and the Cechs
spot settled by Cech, the first Bohemian to ar-
rive in the country, and the progenitor of the
Bohemians of to-day. On the top of this mag-
nificent »ock is the chapel of St. George erected
by Sobeslav I to commemorate a victory over
the German emperor.
Litomefice (Leitmeritz), an important river-
port, is a busy industrial town. It contains an
episcopal palace, a mediaeval cathedral, a late
Gothic town hall, and the curious Hussite Chal-
ice house, the tower of which is in the shape
of a cup to symbolize the communion in both
kinds. The cathedral has some significant
pictures by Skreta, and the oldest map of Bo-
hemia is in the episcopal palace. The market-
place has a statue of Eoland.
CHAPTEE XXIV
MOEAVIA AND SILESIA
Topography of Moravia — Mountains surrounding the country
— Morava river basin — Climate and rainfall — Mineral
products — Agricultural lands — Racial stocks in Moravia —
Early introduction of Christianity — National costumes —
The Hordks — The Handks — The Vlachs — The Slovaks
— Government of Moravia — Brno — Olomouc — Social insti-
tutions — Schools — How the Germans and Jews are favoured
— Causes of racial strife — The Moravian Brethren — Origin
of the sect — Labours in behalf of education — The duchy
of Silesia — Geographic features — Chief characteristics —
The capital.
Moravia 1 is a mountainous plateau sloping
from north to south and surrounded on three
sides by mountain ranges. In the north it is
separated from Silesia by the Sudetic moun-
tains; in the east from Austria and Hungary
by the Carpathian and the White mountains,
a;nd in the west from Bohemia by the Mora-
vian-Bohemian highland. Branches of these
mountains intersect the whole country and give
' For fuller accounts of Moravia see: Dudik's Mahrens all-
gemeine Geschichte (Brno, 1888), SmoUe's Die Markgrafschaft
Mahren (Vienna, 1881), and Mahren und Schlesien in Wort und
Bild (Vienna, n. d.). The latter is a popular work on the geog-
raphy, history, people, arts, and industries of the margravate by
forty different writers.
449
450 Bohemia and the Cechs
it a very irregular surface. Almost the whole
of Moravia belongs to the Morava (March)
river basia, which forms a part of the Danube
systerft. The Morava traverses the entire
length of the margravate — a distance of one
hundred and forty miles — and receives nu-
merous tributaries from the border-moTintain
regions. Its principal branches from the west
and south are the Blatnice, the Svratka, the
Oslava, the Jihlavka, and the Dyje, and the
east and north branches are the Becva and the
Dfevnice. Only a small part of the Morava is
navigable.
The rainfall is moderate and equably distrib-
uted and the mean annual temperature is 48°
Fahrenheit. There are a number of mineral
springs and ponds in the iCOuntry but no lakes.
The total area of the margravate is 8,580
square miles, ninety-seven per cent, of which
is productive. Wheat is grown in great quan-
tities ; also flax, hemp, vegetables, and orchard
fruits. In recent times the sugar beet has been
extensively cultivated on the large estates.
Minerals are abundant, and the quantities of
coal and iron favour industry. Moravia has
an excellent clay for chinaware and vast tracts
of productive forest land. There are also large
A HANAIC.
Moravia and Silesia 451
deposits of lignite, copper, graphite, and sul-
phur.
The land unfortunately is largely in the
hands of a few proprietors, and the small size
of the peasant farms forces their owners, as
in Bohemia, to engage in home industries. The
products that are made in the homes, chiefly
during the winter months, are woodwares and
textiles. The woollen industry of the country
is very old, and some progress has been made
during the last twenty-five years in the weaving
of cotton and linen fabrics.
Three-fourths of the inhabitants of Moravia
belong to the Slavic race — Cechs, Horaks,
Hanaks, and Slovaks — and the balance are
Germans, Jews, and Vlachs. The country was
settled at a very early period by Slavic tribes
of the same ethnic stock as the first settlers
of Bohemia. But the Moravians unified the
scattered tribes within their borders and estab-
lished a strong form of imperial government
several decades in advance of the Bohemians.
Christianity came to Bohemia through Mo-
ravia. During the reign of Ladislav, political
alliance with the Greek emperors at Constan-
tinople made the acquaintance with the new
faith possible; and Svatopluk, the great ruler
452 Bohemia and the Cechs
who founded the kingdom of Moravia, secured
the services of Cyril and Methodus, two Greek
missionaries who had laboured among Slavic
tribes in Macedonia. For a time Moravia was
one of the leading kingdoms of Europe; but
the invasion of the barbaric Magyars, and the
subsequent development of the house of Pfe-
mysl in Bohemia, made the life-lease of the
kingdom brief ; and the sections not conquered
by the Huns were acquired by the Bohemians.
The Moravians have clung with great tenac-
ity to their national dress, and in other ways
they have shown themselves more conservative
and less progressive than the Cechs of Bohe-
mia. The Horaks and the Hanaks represent
the most static division of the Slavic element
of the population. It is worth a visit to Mo-
ravia to see their picturesque costumes. The
young men, with white shirts, brilliant vests
embroidered with scarlet and gold and reach-
ing only to the chest, dark sleeveless jackets
with glittering rows of buttons, low crowns and
almost brimless hats decorated with wreaths
of flowers or rooster feathers, — they look for
all the world as if they might have stepped
from the bill-boards of a comic opera. But
it is a real treat for the tourist now and then
Moravia and Silesia 453
to find men who have not laid aside graceful
and picturesque costumes for the stiff and an-
gular European coat and trousers. The Horaks
occupy the mountainous parts of the Moravian-
Bohemian highland. They are tall and slender
and exceed the Bohemians in stature. They
are temperate and laborious; but, occupy-
ing a part of the country that is not highly
productive, they have progressed less
than the other Slavic elements ia the margra-
vate.
The Hanaks occupy the fertUe river valleys
in the interior of the country and are thrifty
and industrious. They have only medium stat-
ure, but they possess strong vigorous constitu-
tions, and their women have a reputation for
beauty of the substantial sort. Like the Ho-
raks, they are conservative in the matter of
fashions and cling to the picturesque costumes
of bygone ages. They are a quiet people, but
have a keen sense of humour, even in adversity.
While shrewd in monetary matters, they are
hospitable and kind-hearted, and they have a
traditional love for many good horses.
The Vlachs are chiefly shepherd people and
occupy the mountainous regions in the north-
eastern part of the margravate. Their out-
454 Bohemia and the Cechs _
door life makes them hardy and gives them
great power of physical endurance. They are
good-natured, have rare gifts of repartee, and,
although very slightly subjected to scholastic
discipline, they possess no mean order of intel-
lectual power. They are, however, apt to
give way to their passions when crossed, and
their shrewdness sometimes approaches mean-
ness.
It is generally conceded that the Slovaks are
physically and intellectually inferior to the
Cechs properly so-called. They are described
as ' ' generally of lofty stature — well-built,
with broad faces and prominent cheekbones.
For the most part they let their light hair grow
long, but do not wear beards or moustaches.
Their dress of white baize is completed by a
broad leathern girdle, a broad-brimmed hat,
and sandals. Their dwellings are frail. They
are simple, religious, humble, and quiet, but
when heated, quarrelsome. Their songs are as
a rule of a melancholy character. They do any
kind of work and are industrious. By prefer-
ence they occupy themselves with breeding cat-
tle and sheep and go down to the great plain
to reap the harvest. They are very skilful in
domestic manufactures, and their women are
Moravia and Silesia 455
celebrated for their embroideries.'" Some of
the Slovaks of Moravia are doubtless the de-
scendants of Bohemians who settled in Slavo-
nia following the banishment of the Protestants
from Bohemia during the Thirty Years' War.
After the edict of religious toleration granted
by Joseph II, some of the refugees settled in
Moravia.
At the head of the margravate is a governor
appointed by the emperor. The legislative
body of the country — possessing very limited
powers — is the provincial diet composed of
the archbishop of Olomouc, the bishop of Brno,
thirty representatives chosen by the holders of
large estates, thirty-one selected by the towns,
the same number by rural districts, and six
chosen by chambers of commerce. The rep-
resentatives of the rural districts are indirectly
elected. Moravia sends thirty-six deputies to
the parliament at Vienna.
The population of Moravia is two and a quar-
ter million. Brno (Briinn), the capital and
chief industrial city, has one hundred and
twenty-five thousand inhabitants, a fourth of
whom are Jews. In spite of the fact that the
' Quoted from Thomas Capek's Slovaks in Hungary (New
York, 1906). This is an interesting and comprehensive study
of the Slovaks.
456 Bohemia and the Cechs
Germans (and Jews) constitute little more
than a fourth of the population of the country,
by an ingenious manipulation of the electorate
they have long been able to maintain a major-
ity in the Moravian diet.
Brno lies in a fertile valley between the Svi-
tava and the Svratka rivers. The town is com-
manded by the Spielberg, which is crowned by
a citadel that was long used as a government
prison. Here Count Silvio Pellico, the Italian
patriot-poet, was confined for eight yfears. The
horrible torture-cells and the comparative re-
cency of their use (1855) are not calculated
to inspire in the visitor a very exalted notion
of the Hapsburg conception of man's humanity
to man.
Brno has some interesting mediaeval
churches, a Moorish synagogue, an industrial
museum, and great numbers of industrial es-
tablishments for the manufacture of machin-
ery, metallic wares, leather goods, and woollen
fabrics.
Olomouc (Olmiitz), on an island in the Mo-
rava river, and formerly the capital of the
margravate, is a much more interesting place
than Brno. It is the residence of a prince
bishop ; has a Gothic cathedral which contains
Moravia and Silesia 457
the remains of King Vaclav III, who was assas-
sinated here in 1306 ; fine promenades and parks
that have taken the place of the former for-
tifications ; a theological seminary, which is all
that survives of the former university ; a town
hall with a curious astronomical clock, and a
public square that is embellished with a lofty
and over-ornate religious shaft, known as the
Trinity Column. The chief industries of Olo-
mouc are brewing, distilling, milling, and the
manufacture of chemicals.
The social institutions of Moravia are in
most respects similar to those in Bohemia,
which have already been described, with this
important difference — in general culture and
national spirit the Moravians are distinctly
behind the Bohemians, with the result that
political, economic, and industrial matters are
more often in the hands of Germans and Jews
than is the case in Bohemia.
In the matter of education, conditions are
less favourable than in Bohemia ; and here, as
there, the German minority lords it over the
people and prevents, so far as possible, the
organization of schools in which the national
language is the medium of instruction. Of
the sixty-three secondary schools for boys
458 Bohemia and the Cechs
in Moravia — gjnniiasiums and real-schools —
there are sixteen gymnasia for the Slavs and
fourteen for the Germans (and Jews), and six-
teen real-schools for the Germans and seven-
teen for the Slavs. There are only four high
schools for girls in the margravate, and three
of these are for the Germans. When it is re-
called that the Germans (and Jews) constitute
little more than a fourth of the population of
the country, it will at once be apparent that the
central government, which has the control of
secondary education, discriminates unfairly
against the Moravians. Matters are even
worse when it comes to technical and special
schools of secondary grade. Of the funds ap-
propriated for the maintenance of such schools
the Germans get a trifle over sixty-five per
cent, of the whole amount and the Moravians
a trifle under thirty-five per cent. As a con-
sequence, here as in Bohemia, the people bear
the burden of taxation for education ; and, yet,
if they wish their young people to receive ade-
quate training for industrial and commercial
pursuits, they are forced to maintain private
schools at their own expense.^ In other words
1 For an account of the educational situation in Moravia, see
an interesting article by Professor Pranti§ek Drtina in the
Cechische Revue for May, 1908.
Moravia and Silesia 459
it seems to be the settled policy of the imperial
government to favour at every point the Ger-
mans and the Jews in the matter of fitting
young people for the duties of adulthood.
And the odd part of it all is that the fa-
voured classes demand these unfair privileges
as rights ! An educated Hebrew, with whom I
discussed the matter, argued that all the strife
and discontent of the country was due to the
education of the Bohemians and the Moravians.
"In the days when we (i.e., Germans and
Jews) were in exclusive possession of the busi-
ness interests of the country, race strife was
unknown; the Bohemians and the Moravians
cultivated the soil and constituted the common
labouring class; but now that they have been
allowed to have their own university, institute
of technology, and general and special second-
ary schools, they have elbowed themselves into
every department of productive industry, and
all this strife and race hatred is the result."
It is the good old feudal times, when Germans
and Jews were privileged commercial classes,
that the speaker would like to see revived!
The fact that the traveller meets such utter-
ances with relative frequency goes far toward
explaining the deep-seated dislike of Germans
460 Bohemia and the Cechs
and Jews by the Bohemians and the Mora-
vians.
Moravia is best known in England and Amer-
ica by the* religious sect that grew out of the
Hussite reformation. Among us known as the
Moravian Brethren or United Brethren (Uni-
tas Fratrum), in Bohemia and Moravia they
are more often called the Bohemian Brethren.
The formal organization of the sect dates from
the year 1467, when the episcopacy was con-
ferred on a small band of the followers of John
Hus by the Waldensians, an evangelical organ-
ization that for centuries had led a religious
life independent of Eome. They occupied the
mountain valleys of the Alps, and their remote-
ness and comparative unimportance protected
them from outside interference. When, how-
ever, during the thirteenth and fourteenth cen-
turies, the Eoman church became a temporal
as well as a spiritual power, it sent crusading
armies against the Waldensians, Albigenses,
and all other non-conforming sects in Chris-
tendom. Large numbers of French and Italian
Waldensian exiles found refuge in Bohemia,
where they were welcomed by the nobles who
resented the antagonism of the Roman see to
the use of the national language in religious
Moravia and Silesia 461
worship. As the Waldensians claimed inde-
pendent existence since apostolic times, they
felt competent to bestow the episcopacy upon
the new Bohemian sect.
Although in no sense a national church, the
Bohemian Brethren became a powerful ecclesi-
astical organization, and at the beginning of
the Thirty Years' War its membership ex-
ceeded two hundred thousand. As all Protes-
tants were banished from Bohemia and Mo-
ravia after the battle of White Mountain, the
Brethren fled to Saxony, Poland, and Hungary.
Herrnhut in Saxony became a rallying point,
and here the " hidden seed " was treasured.
Missionaries were sent throughout the world —
to Greenland, Labrador, North America, the
West Indies, Tibet, Africa, and the East Indies.
Large numbers came to America in 1740 and
founded the towns of Bethlehem and Nazareth
in Pennsylvania. They cleared the forests,
developed farmlands, and carried the Grospel
to the American Indians. As early as 1733
they had established missions in Greenland.
The Brethren had inherited from John Amos
Komensky, one of their early bishops, high
ideals in the matter of education; and wher-
ever they went, they organized schools, acad-
462 Bohemia and the Cechs
emies, and other educational institutions. And
tlie world owes these zealous Christian teachers
a large debt of gratitude for the improved
school systems which their labours made pos-
sible. What a different story the historian of
Cech civilization might have to relate if, instead
of banishing Komensky and his followers from
his possessions, Ferdinand II had made them
the educators and the spiritual leaders of Bo-
hemia and Moravia ! ^
The present duchy of Silesia, which is only
a remnant of the original province, has an area
of 1,98.0 . square miles. Before the historic
" grab " of Frederick the Great its area was
17,540 square miles. It formed a part of the
short-lived kingdom of Moravia, and for a hun-
dred years thereafter it was held, now by Po-
land, now by Bohemia. In the tenth century,
however, it became permanently incorporated
in the kingdom of Bohemia. The Germaniza-
tion of the duchy began in the thirteenth cen-
tury, and throughout the middle ages it was the
1 For accounts of the Moravian (Bohemian) Brethren see:
Bishop de Schweinitz's History of the unitas fratrum (Bethle-
hem, Penn'a, 1885); Hamilton's History of the Moravian church
during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (Bethlehem,
1900) ; Gindely's Geschichte der Bohmischen Brtider (Prague, ,
1858), and Czerwenka's Geschichte der EvangeUschen Kirche'
in Bohmen (Leipzig, 1S70).
Moravia and Silesia 463
most distinctly Grerman part of the Pfemysl
possessions. At the peace-conference at "West-
phalia the Prussians extracted from the un-
willing Ferdinand the right of the Protestants
to remain in the duchy. This became a bone
of contention and the ostensible cause of the
conquest of Frederick the Great.
Silesia belongs to the Sudetic mountain re-
gion. On the southeast the duchy is separated
from Hungary by the Carpathian mountains,
and on the west by minor ranges that are off-
shoots of the Sudetic system. Here are found
the most elevated regions of the province, the
highest peak being the Old Father (4,678 feet).
The Vistula takes its rise in the Carpathian
mountains in Silesia, and the Oder flows through
a part of the province, its principal branches
being the Oppa and the Mohra. The mean
annual temperature of the duchy is 50° Fahren-
heit, and the rainfall from twenty to thirty
inches. Silesia is rich in coal and a few other
mineral products.
The population of the duchy is about seven
hundred thousand people, including Bohemians
(Cechs), G-ermans, Poles, and Jews. Troppau,
the capital, has a population of twenty-five
thousand inhabitants, a fifth being Jews. The
464 Bohemia and the Cechs
city has numerous establisliments for the man-
ufacture of woollen cloth, jute fabrics, machin-
ery, and beet sugar. It was here that a con-
gress for^the maintenance of absolutism met
in 1820! Another important industrial city is
Jagerndorf, with extensive cloth-factories.^
^ For an account of Silesia see: Mahren und Schlesien in Wort
und Bild (Vienna, n. d.).
THE END.
APPENDIXES
I. Suggestions foe Tbavellees'
Theee is probably no country in Europe in
greater need of a satisfactory English guide-
book than Bohemia. The usually faithful red-
backed Baedeker in Bohemia is no longer
faithful. Baedeker's " Austria-Hungary "
(tenth edition) is lamentably meagre as re-
gards Bohemia; and, although published in
English for the ostensible use of American
and English tourists, like all other books on
Bohemia written by Germans, its viewpoint is
unmistakably pro-German. To German parts
of Bohemia — the least interesting portions of
the kingdom — it is reasonably liberal in the
matter of space, but with a score of highly
picturesque Cech cities, — including some of
the most interesting mediasval towns in the
kingdom, — its treatment is niggardly in the
extreme. Prague, one of the finest mediaeval
towns in Europe, gets all told less than a dozen
465
466 Appendixes
pages; Kutna Hora (Kuttenberg), after
Prague, of most interest to American and Eng-
lish travellers, gets a dozen lines in fine print,
and Jiciti, a veritable gem in matters of me-
diaeval interest, gets nine words!
The traveller is therefore urged to carry
Liitzow's Bohemia: an historical sketch,
the revised edition of which may be obtained
in inexpensive and compact form in Dent's
" Everyman's Library " (London, 1910), and
the same author's Story of Prague in the
Mediaeval Town Series (London, 1907).
American and English travellers may also
secure (gratis) copies of the admirable Guide
to the Mngdom of Bohemia (Prague, 1906) by
application at their respective consulates in
Prague or from the secretary of the Lord
Mayor in the old Town Hall. A list of the
English and American books on Bohemia,
with critical estimates of the same, will be
found in the second division of this appendix.
Late spring and early autumn are the most
favourable seasons for travel in Bohemia, but
the summer climate is not unlike that of Ger-
many. Tourists who go to Dresden and Mu-
nich, and fail to see Prague and other Bohe-
mian towns described in this work, miss some
Appendixes 467
of the most interesting places in Europe. The
country is admirably adapted for walking
tours, particularly in the regions of the Giant
mountains in the north, the Bohemian Forest
in the south, and the Ore mountains in the west.
There are excellent mountain trails; and the
dense forests, numerous glacial tarns, the large
number of mountain streams, and the location
of inns at convenient distances provide the
necessary incentives for the pedestrian. The
country also affords admirable facilities for
the cyclist. The roads are reasonably good
and the places of interest are readily acces-
sible.
American and English automobilists in in-
creasing numbers are touring the country
during the summer months, and I have heard
only the most enthusiastic accounts of such
tours. George C. Kiggs, Esq., and his wife
(Kate Douglas Wiggin, the author) made the
tour of northern Bohemia last summer, and
Mr. Eiggs writes me concerning the trip:
" The roads are excellent for motoring. They
are well laid and well taken care of, and the
routes are exceedingly picturesque. We
found no difficulty in putting up our machines
in the little hotels at which we stopped. In
468 Appendixes
some of them we were permitted to house our
motor in the main entrance, as many of them
are without any other facilities of garage.
In the larger towns, however, there was no
difificulty in finding garage space. We found
the charges low for the motor in Bohemia; no
difficulty whatever with the police, nor with
the peasantry."
Travellers will find no more difficulty with
the language problem than in any other coun-
try. The Cech is the national language of the
country, although Grerman, French, and Eng-
lish are widely spoken. Bohemians do not ob-
ject to speaking German to foreigners, al-
though they have scruples against its use with
Austrians. If, therefore, the tourist speaks
the German, he should be at pains to make it
known that he is not a German.
Hotels are generally fair and not unreason-
able in their charges. The cabmen leave much
to be desired, a defect common to most Euro-
pean and American cities. In Prague in par-
ticular the traveller is forced to face extortion
and altercation with annoying frequency be-
cause of the persistence of the terminology of
the antiquated monetary system. The mone-
tary unit is the crown, which is worth about
Appendixes 469
twenty cents in American money. Formerly
the florin (gulden), worth forty cents, was in
general use. The cabmen take advantage of
the cofifusion in monetary terms and agree to
take the traveller over a definite route for a
fixed sum in crowns, say five ($1.00). At the
termination of the drive the tourist is asked
to pay five gulden ($2.00), or twice the sum
agreed upon, and it is the experience of most
visitors that the hotel porters and the police-
men invariably decide in the cabman's favour
when appealed to. This is one of the annoy-
ances that the municipal authorities should
remedy. It has, however, been my experience
that the cabmen of Prague do not represent
greater moral lapses than their colleagues in
many other European cities.
n. Select Bibliography*
(a) American and English books
1. Bakee, James. " Pictures from Bohemia
drawn with pen and peneU." Chicago,
1894.
A combination of guide-book and personal
narrative.
1 See also the bibliographic foot-notes throughout the work.
470 Appendixes
2. Balch, Emily Gebene. " Our Slavic fellow
citizens." New York, 1910.
A painstaking work dealing (1) with Slavic
immigration at its source and (2) with' Slavic
immigration in the United States.
3. CoLQUHOUN, Aechibald AND Ethel. " The
whirlpool of Europe." New York, 1907.
Thoroughly readable chapters on the in-
habitants of the variegated Hapsburg do-
minions.
4. Gkegob, Fbances. " The story of Bo-
hemia." Cincinnati and New York,
1896.
A brief survey of the history of Bohemia
from earliest times to the battle of White
Mountain.
5. Henby, James. " Sketches of Moravian life
and character." Philadelphia, 1859.
Brief account of the life, character, religion,
and educational institutions of the Mora-
vian Brethren.
6. HoDGsoiT, Randolph L. "On plain and
peak." London, 1898.
Sporting sketches of Bohemia and the Tyrol.
7. LuTzow, Francis, Count. "Bohemia: an
historical sketch." London and New
York, 1910.
Appendixes 471
A fascinating account of the history of Bo-
hemia.
8. LiJTzow, Fbancis, Count. " The story of
Prague " (Mediaeval Town Series). Lon-
don, 1907.
A valuable historical guide for tourists who
visit Prague.
9. Maurice, Charles Edmund. " The story of
Bohemia." New York and London, 1896.
A sympathetic account of the history of
Bohemia in the Story of the Nation Series.
10. Meaes, John W. " Heroes of Bohemia."
Philadelphia, 1879.
The three heroes discussed are John Hus,
Jerome of Prague, and John 2izka.
11. Vickers, Robert H. " History of Bohe-
mia." Chicago, 1894.
The most comprehensive history of Bohe-
mia in English.
Among works of fiction in English on Bohe-
mia, the following ma:y be named: James
Baker's " The gleaming dawn " and " The
cardinal's page," Deborah Alcock's " Crushed
yet conquering: a story of Constance and
Bohemia," George Sand's " Jean Ziska " and
" Consuelo," S. Kahn's " Gabriel: the Jews
472 Appendixes
of Prague," F. Marion Crawford's " Witch
of Prague," Bozena Nemcova's " The grand-
mother: a story of country life in Bohemia,"
Frederick T. Vemaleken's " In the land of
marvels: folk-tales from Austria and Bohe-
mia," Alois v. Smilovsky's " Heavens," Peter
Eosegger's " Forest schoolmaster," Alice and
Egerton Castle's " Pride of Jennico," F. P.
Kopta's " Forestman of Wimpek," Karolina
Svetla's " Maria Felicia," and Albert Henry
Wratislaw's " Sixty folk-tales from Slavonic
sources. ' '
(b) French books »
1. BoTJLiEB, J. " Les tcheques et la Boheme
contemporaine." Paris, 1897.
2. Denis, Ernst. " La Boheme depuis la
Montague Blanc." Paris, 1903.
The Edinburgh Review says of Denis' great
■work : " A foreigner, but a perfect master of
the Slav languages, he has been enabled to
consult the original sources of Bohemian
history and to grasp the trend of public
opinion, and is qualified to draw conclusions
which shall be beyond suspicion."
3. Fricz, J., et al. " La Boheme: historique,
pittoresque, et litteraire." Paris, 1867.
Appendixes 473
4. Hantich, Henei. " La Boheme d'aujour-
d'hui." Paris, n. d.
5. Hantich, Henki. * ' Prague : historic, art,
economie." Paris and Prague, n. d.
A beautifully illustrated guide for the city of
Prague. It supplements admirably the his-
torical guide by Liitzow.
6. HiPMAiT, Chaeles. "La nation tcheque:
sa mission et son role en Europe."
Prague, 1895.
7. Legee, Louis. " Prague " (Les villes d'art
celebres). Paris, 1907.
8. Eegamey, Jeanne and Feedbeic. " Nos
freres de Boheme." Paris, 1908.
9. Tybsova, Renata, and Hantich, Hbnei.
" Le paysan tcheque." Paris and Prague,
n. d.
(c) German books
1. Bendel, J. "Die Deutschen in Bohmen,
Mahren, und Schlesien." Vienna, 1884.
2. GiNDELY, Anton. ' ' G-eschichte des dreissig-
jahrigen Krieges." Prague, 1869-1880.
There is an English translation of this work
by Andrew Ten Brook (New York, 1884).
3. Palacky, Feantisek. " Geschichte von
Bohmen." Prague, 1844-1867.
474 Appendixes
A German translation of the most authorita-r
tive history of Bohemia.
4. Pescheck, Chbistian Adolph. " Ge-
schichte der Gegenreformation in Boh-
men." Leipzig, 1850,
There is an English translation of the first
edition of this work (London, 1845).
5. ScHOTTKY, Julius Max. " Prag wie es war
und wie es ist." Prague, n. d.
6. SoNNBCK, Heineich, et al. " Mahren nnd
Schlesien." Vienna, n. d.
7. SvATEK, Josef. " Culturhistorische Bilder
aus Bohmen." Vienna, 1879.
INDEX
A
Adam of Bremen, 211
Adam of Sternberg, 106
Adler river. See LouiSnd
Aehrenthal, Count, 155
^neas Sylvius, 53, 83
Agrarian party, 171
Agriculture, 346-360
Albert of Hapsburg, 79
Alcock, Deborah, 471
AleS, MikuldS, 296
Alexander V, Pope, 54, 61
Alexander VI, Pope, 97
Andrew, Bishop of Prague, 30
Andrew of Habernfeld, 257
Animals, 10
Anti-Semitism, 171
Arberberg, 5
Arber lake, 5
Architecture, 315-321
Aristotle, 2
Army, 174
Arnulph, 22
Articles of Prague, 76-77, 84,
90, 103
Art societies, 287, 289
Auersberg, Prince Adolph, 150,
151
Ausgleich, 147
Aussig, 12, 372
Austi, 72
Austria, 143, 144, 147
Automobiliug, 467
Bach ministry, 142
Baker, James, 242, 469
Bakov-nad-Jizerou, 370
Balbinus, 258
Balch, Emily Greene, 470
Banks, 371, 415
BartoS, FrantiSek, ^57, 278
Basel, council of, 78
Belcredi, Count, 146
Belvedere, 397
Benda, FrantiSek, 327
Bendl, J., 473
Bendl, Karel, 331
Benedict XIII, Pope, 54
Bene5 of Veitmil, 44
Bergler, Joseph, 287
Bethlehem chapel, 57, 62, 202
Bibliography, 469-474
Bieber, Jindnch, 327
Bfld Hora. See White Moun-
tain
475
476
Index
Bflek, PrantiSek, 315
Bilek, Jacob, 257
Birds, 10
Black lake, 5, 429
Blahoslav, «Jan, 257, 325
Blodek, v., 332
Bohemia — geography, 1-15;
history, 16-132; political
conditions, 133-155; people,
156-188; social institutions,
189-209; religion, 210-232;
education, 233-248 ; language
and literature, 249-283;
painting, 284-306; sculpttjre,
307-315; architecture, 315-
321; music, 322-345; agri-
culture, 346-360; industry,
361-372;commerce, 372-375;
capital (Prague), 376-417;
spa resorts, 418-448; other
towns, 434-448; provinces
(Moravia and Silesia), 449—
464; bibliography, 469
Bohemian Brethren, 324, 460-
462
Bohemian Forest, 4-5, 354,
365, 368, 437
Bohemian Industrial Museum,
201
Bohemian language, 152
Bohemian-Moravian highland,
7
Bohemian National Museum,
■134, 200, 406 .
Bohemian National Theatre,
295, 320, 344, 409
Bohemian String Quartet, 341^
344
Boji, 17
Boleslav I, 25
Boleslav II, 25
Boleslav III, 25
Boniface IX, Pope, 64
Book destroyers, 115, 253
Bofivoj I, 21, 216
Bofivoj II, 27
Bosnia, 115
Bouda, Alois, 242
Boulier, J., 472
Bozdfich, Emanuel, 270
Bo^ena, 30
Braccioliui, Poggio, 227
Brahe, Tycho, 104, 183
Branberger, Jan, 343
Brauner, Bohuslav, 281
Braunerova, Z., 304
Brdohills,6
Brno, 31, 191, 213, 455
Brechler, A., 303
Bfetislav I, 25
Bfetislav II, 27
Breweries, 362
Bro2fk, Vd,clav, 299, 407
Brux. See Most
Bubdk, Ludvik, 303
Budfijovice, 8, 187, 231, 237,
362, 372, 435
Budweis. See BudSjovice
Bulgarians, 157
Bylany, 9
Cabmen, 468
Odda, FrantiSek, 248, 279
Caesar, Julius, 9
Calixtines, 70, 82
Index
477
Calvinists, 230
Cheb (Eger), 372
Capek, Thomas, x, 15, 262
ChelKck^, Peter, 98
Carloman, 22
Cheskjr Brod, 194
Carlsbad — Foundation, 41;
Chicago, 160
industries, 373; geological
China, 205
formation, 419; sprudel
Chods, 353, 370
springs, 420; diseases
Chotgbof, 370
treated, 422; bathing estab-
Christian sociaUst party, 171
lishments, 423; Israelites,
Christianity. See Religion
424; royal visitors, 425;
Chrudim, 237, 372
shopkeepers, 427
Civic institutions, 168
Camiola, 191
Clemangis, 224
Carvajal, Cardinal, 86
Clemens, Samuel L., 154
Cdslav, 367, 443
Clement VII, Pope, 33
Catholic church. See Roman
Clerical party, 171
Cathohc church
Climate, 8
Casimir, 81
Coal, 366
Cattle-rearing, 10, 359
Colquhoun, Archibald R., and
Cech, Svatopluk, 272
Ethel, 356
Cech, the mythical founder of
Comenius. iSee Komensk^
Bohemia, 448
Commerce, 373-375
Cechs. See Bohemians
Communion, 70
Celibacy of the clergy, 28
Composers, 322-345
Celakovskjr, T,adislav, 268, 281
Concordat of 1856, 141
Celansk;^, Ludvik, 342
Conrad Otho, 29
Cemeteries, 183, 230
Conrad Waldhayser, 43
Censorship, 132, 206, 266
Constance, council of, 62
Cereals, 9
Cosmos of Prague, 1, 256
Cermdk, FrantiSek, 291
Costiunes, 158, 353, 452
Cermdk, Jaroslav, 194, 297
Cotton weaving, 368
Cernfn, 327
Courts, 172
Cearlemagne, 21
Croatia, 191
Charies IV, 37-^9, 244, 284,
Crawford, F. Marion, 172, 184,
309, 390
251
Charies V, 103
Cycling, 467
Charles VI, 123
Cyril, 22, 213, 250
Charles Louis, 132
Curda, F., 205
Charles bridge, 310, 317, 377
Czemy, Karel, 327
478
Index
D
Eggs, 369
Dalimil, 256
Eisenstein, 439
Dana, John Cotton, ix
Elbe river, 2, 5, 374
Danube river, 7
Electorate, 168
D&lina, Jan,»301
Elementary schools, 234
D6dovd, 368
Emigration, 360
Defective classes, 168
Emingrova, H., 304
Defenestration of Prague, 111
England, 155, 205
Denis, Ernst, 113, 133, 472
Erasmus, 66
D6vana, 211
Erzgebirge. See Ore moun-
Devil's lakCj 5, 439
tains
Diet (Boheniian parliament).
Ethnic stocks, 157
169
Ethnographic museums, 205,
Divorce, 165
402
Dobrovsk^, Josef, 259-260
Evening Post, 162
Doma21ice, 4, 77, 158, 353, 440
Drahomira, 216
P
Drama, 269, 411
Dress. See Costumes
Fait, Emanuel, 281
Drtina, FrantiSek, 239, 248,
Farms. See Agriculture
279
FeUx "V, Pope, 84
Duchov, 372
Ferdinand I, 101
Dumka, 324
Ferdinand II, 106, 109, 219
Durdlk, Josef, 279
Ferdinand III, 83, 121
Durdfk, Paul, 205, 281
Ferdinand IV, 131
DuSek, FrantiSek, 327
Fibich, Zden^k, 338
Dusik, Ladislav, 327
Fiction, 275-278
Dux. See Duchov
Filip, Frederick, 15
Dvorak, AntonlUj composer,
Foerster, Josef B., 340
216, 332-338
Folk dances, 324
DvoHk, Antonin, painter, 301
Folk music, 325
Dyk, Victor, 271
Forests, 8
Fox, John, 222
E
France, 155
Edmundsklamm, 7
Francis Bridge, 319
Education, 163, 233-248
Francis Joseph, 132
Eger, See Cheb
FrantiSek, I, 415
Eger river. See Ohfe river
FrantiSek Ferdinand, 132
Index
479
FrantiSkovy Li,za&. See Fran-
Greek Orthodox church, 70, 88
zensbad
Gregor, Frances, 48
Franzensbad, 429-432
Gregory VII, Pope, 27, 215
Frauenberg. See Hluboki
Gregory VIII, Pope, 70
Frederick Barbarossa, 29
Gr6gr, Edward, 190
Fri6, Antonfn, 203, 280
Gr6gr, Julius, 190
Fricz, J., 472
GroS, Karel, 199, 416
Frida, Emil. See Vrchlick^,
Guilds, 370
Jaroslav
Gustav Adolphus, 118
Fruits, 9, 358
Guth, Jiff, 281
Fflgner, Jindfich, 190
Gymnasia. See Secondary
Furiant, 324
schools
Fiirstenberg, 327
Gymnastics. See Sokols
G
H
Gablonz wares, 365
Hamza, 277
Galieia, 144, 187
Handks, 159, 453
Gareis, A., 302
Hanka, Vdclav, 268
Geba,uer, Jan, 278
Hantich, Henri, 287, 326
Geese, 359
Havlf 6ek, Kaxel, 138, 407, 442,
George of Podgbrad, 81-106
445
Geographic literature, 281
Havrdnek, BedHch, 303
Geography of Bohemia, 1-15
Hay, John, 272
Geringer, August, 160
Haydn, Joseph, 327
Germans, 128, 177-181, 459
Hebrews. See Jews
Giant mountains, 3
Helfert, Joseph Alexander, 52
Gindely, Anton, 103, 473
HelUch, 291
Girls, education of, 240
Henry II, 25
Glass, 364
Henry IV, 27
Gloves, 368
Henry of Carinthia, 34
Gojau, 437
Hergel, FrantiSek, 313
Gold, 367
Hehnan, August:^n, 14
Golden Bull, 41
Herold, Edward, 303
Golden Path, 4
Hermskretschen, 7
Goluchowski, Count, 144
Herzegovina, 155
Gottesgab, 3
Historic rights, 148
Graduals, 408
Hladfk, 277
Grain, 358
Hlahol, 330, 344
480
Index
Hldvka, J., 320
Hlubokd,, 436
Hohenlohe-Schillingsfurst, 444
Hohenwart, Count, 150
HoMrek, E., 301
Holecek,- 21t
Hollar, Vdclav, 412
Holstein, 23
Holub, Emil, 281
Home industries, 367
Hops, 358
Hordks, 159, 452
Horticulture, 358
Hostinskj:-, Otakar, 279, 342
H6tels, 468
Hradfiany, 390-404
Hfebeny, 6
Hroby, 110
Hrubd Skdla, 446
Hfimal^, VojtSch, 332
Hubsch, Anton, 205
Hude6ek, S., 305
Hungary, 100, 147
Huns. See Magyars
Hus, John — Early life, 55;
preacher at Bethlehem
chapel, 56; disciple of Wy-
cliffe, 57; attacks the sale
of miracles, 62; excommuni-
cated by the Roman church,
63; before the council of
Constance, 66; burned as a
heretic, 67; a martyr, 223-
226; connection with the
university of Prague, 245;
monument at Prague, 309;
church music, 323; statue
at Jifiln, 445
Hymnals, 408
Hyna'is, A., 300
Iglau. See Jihlava
Illiteracy, 164
Indulgences, 62
Industrial schools, 241
Industry, 361-373
Innocent VII, Pope, 54
Iron, 366
Iser river. See Jizera river
Israelites. See Jews
Jabloneck^ zbo^i. See Gab-
lonz wares
Jagerndorf, 464
Jauovice, 11
Japan, 205
Jaromir, 25
Jaroslav of Martinic, 111
Jav-urek, Karel, 292
Jedlifika, 295
Jenewein, F., 301
Jef dbek, Frantiiek V., 270
Jefdbek, LuboS, 404
Jerome of Prague, 57, 67, 226-
229
Jesuits, 108, 111, 115, 116, 117,
119, 125, 135, 162, 177, 219,
246, 254
Jews, 138, 171, 181-188, 209,
351, 356, 382, 424, 459, 463
Ji6fn, 120, 191, 200, 237, 309,
315, 444-446
Jihlava, 31
Index
481
Jirdnek, Josef, 343
Koniggratz. See Krd.lov6 Hrar
Jirdsek, Alois, 276
dec
Jizera river, 5
Konigswart, 429
John XXIII, Pope, 54, 62
Kofensk^, Josef, 205, 281
John of Luxemburg, 34-36
Kosdrek, A., 303
John of Nepomuk, 218, 378
Kovafovic, Karel, 340
John of Rokycan, 78, 84, 95
Ko2eIuh, Leopold, 327
Joseph II, 126, 230
Kozina, 354
Josephtown, 182, 382
Krdlov6 Dvur, 254
Journals. See Newspapers
Krdlovg Hradec, 147, 231, 237,
Jungmann, Josef, 136, 260-261
367, 444
Justice. See Courts
Kranner, J., 319
Krdsnohorskd, EliSka, 270
K
Kraus, Ernst, 209
Krej«, Josef, 281
Kka.n z Albstu, 343
Kremlin, 390
KJlan, Jindfich, 343
Krisfcan, 256
Kafka, V., 312
Kfivokldt, 438
Kautsk^, J., 303
Krkono^e, 355
Karluv Tyn, 40, 285, 434
Krok, 19
Karlovy Vary. See Carlsbad
Kroupa, J., 302
Karlsbad. See Carlsbad
Krumlov, 315, 436
Keilberg, 3
KrySpin, FrantiSek, 298
Kepler, Johannes, 105
KunSticki, BoJena, 277
Keilmansegge, Count, 154
Kungtiokd Hora, 443
Kladno, 146, 237
Kutnd Hora, 60, 87, 96, 191,
Klet, 437
315, 366, 441-442
Kli6ka, Josef, 332
L
Klostermann, 277
Kneisel Quartet, 344
Labe river. See Elbe river
KnittI, Karel, 343
Labourers, 350
Knupfer, B., 304
Lace, 369
KoUn, 125, 315, 367
Ladislas Posthumus, 80, 82
Koldr, Josef JifJ, 270
Lakes, 4, 8
KoUdr, John, 261-262
Language and literature, 249-
Komensk^, John Amos, 222,
283
234, 258, 407, 445, 461
Language question, 225, 246,
Koni4§, Andrew, 113, 253
348
482
Index
Lawrence of Bre^ova, 75, 256
Maixner, Pierre, 293
Leitmeritz. See LitomSfice
Magenta, 143
Leopold I, 125
Magyars, 23
Leopold II, 128, 195
Maid Strana. See Small Town
Letter of Majesty, 105, 108,
Maljr, Jindnch, 203
110
Manfes, AmeUa, 290
Letnd, 197
Man6s, Anton, 290
Lev^, Hradeo, 22, 216
Manfes, Guido, 290
Lev^, Vd,clav, 310
Manfes, Josef, 293
Liberec. See Reichenberg
Manuscript, question of, 254
Libraries, 195, 200-201, 408
MaKk, Julius, 304
LibuSa, 19, 255
March river. See Morava
Liebscher, Karel, 304
river
Lipany, 194
Marcomanni, 17
Liquor industry, 362
Marid,nsk6 LAznS. See Marien-
Liska, E., 300
bad
Literature 234, 249-283
Maria Theresa, 123, 246, 444
LitomSfice, 9, 231, 448
Marienbad, 428-429
Livosice, 358
Martin V, Pope, 73, 84
Lobkovio family, 7
Martyrs, 222-232
Longfellow, Henry W., 272
Masaryk, TomdS, 248, 279
Lothair, 28
MaSek, Karel, 301
Louciand river, 5
Matthew of Hungary, 94, 107
Louis, 100
Matthew of Janov, 46
Louis the Pious, 21
Mauder, J., 313
Ludmila, 22, 216, 256
Maurice, Charles Edmund, 40,
Lusatia, 157
51, 89
Lutheran church, 101, 230
Maximilian, 103, 109
Lutheran reformation, 99
Melka, V., 302
Lutzow, Count, 26, 29, 32, 42,
Menhardof Jindfichuv Hradeo,
52, 62, 66, 96, 102, 109, 115,
82
122, 130, 134, 220, 224, 253,
Methodus, 22, 213
264, 283
Mettemich, 131, 133, 266, 429
Milic of Kromgff^e, 44
M
Military service, 174
Minerals, 9, 366
Machar, Josef Svatopluk, 274
Mineral springs, 9, 418-433
Machinery, 363
Mocker, J., 321
Index
483
M0M6, battle of, 100
Moldau river. See Vltava
river
Monuments, 308
Morava river, 7
Moravia — Introduction of
Christianity, 21; costumes,
158; Sokols, 193; educa-
tion, 238; topography, 449;
agriculture, 451 ; races, 452;
government, 455; social in-
stitutions, 457; Moravian
Brethren, 460
Moravian Brethren. See Bo-
hemian Brethren
Most, 372
Mozart, Wolfgang, 327
Mucha, A., 300
Music, 322-345
Myslbek, Josef, 311
N
Naming the Jews, 185
Napoleon, 129
Ndprstek, Vojta, 201
Nation, 164
Navigable rivers, 374
Navrdtil, J., 302
Nedbal, Oskar, 341
NSmcovd, Bo&na, 275
N6mec, Bohumil, 280
Neruda, Jan, 327
Neuwelt. See Nov^ SvSt
Newark Public Library, ix
Newspapers, 138, 167, 205-209
Nicholas V, Pope, 84
Nicholas of Husinec, 72
Novd Paka, 191
Novdk, Arne, 248
Novd,k, Jan V., 283
Novdk, L., 305
Novdk, Vitgzlav, 341
Novopack^, J., 304
Nov^ Svet, 365
O
Ohfe river, 3
Old Father Mountain, 3
Olmiitz. See Olomouc
Old Cech party, 170
Olomouc, 213, 456
Opera, 327, 411
Ore mountains, 3, 8, 365
Ostrdil, Otakar, 342
Paganism, 211
Painters and painting, 284-306
Palack^, FrantiSek — Quoted,
18, 23, 38, 45, 139; sketch
of his literary labours, 263-
268; bibUography, 473
Palaok^, Jan, 281
Parchen, 146
Pardubice, 13, 315, 367, 373,
443
Parks, 413
Parliament. See Diet
Pan-Slavism, 137
Paper industry, 364
Patriotism, 190
Payne, Peter, 78
Peasant industries, 354
People — Bohemians, 156-176;
Germans, 177-181; Jews,
181-188
484
Index
Perun, 211
Peschek, Christopher Adolph,
109
Peter of Mladenovice, 256
Pilsen. iSeeiPlzen.
Pinkaa, S., 298
Pipes, 368
Pirna, 7
Pirner, Max, 301
Pisa, couacil of, 54
Pfsek, 439
Pius II, Pope, 90
Piux IX, Pope, 143
Pivoda, FrantiSek, 343
Plzefi, 12, 237, 353, 362, 372
Pofita, Philip, 281
Pod^brad, George of, 81-106
Pod6brady, 367, 443
Poetry, 271-275
Political parties, 170
Polka, 324
Poludnice, 211
Popp, A., 312
Population, 11
Potocki, Count, 150
Poultry, 10
Powder gate, 381
Prachov, 446
Prague — Rainfall, 8; Pan-
Slav congress, 140; Joseph-
town, 182; Germans, 187;
Sokols, 190, 196-198; libra-
ries, 200; Bohemian In-
dustrial Museum, 201 ; news-
papers, 207; schools, 235;
imiversity, 243; school of
painting, 284; art galleries,
305; sculptures, 307; archi-
tecture, 315; opera, 327;
conservatory of music, 343;
industries, 363; banks, 371;
railways, 375;' divisions of
the city, 376; Town Hall,
379; Josephtown, 38^
Hrad6any, 390; cathedral,
394; ethnographic museum,
402; Small Town, 403;
Bohemian National Mu-
seum, 406; Rudolphinum,
411; monuments, 414; ho-
tels, 417; cabmen, 468
Praha. See Prague
Pfemysl, 20
Pfemysl Otakar I, 29
Pfemysl Otakar II, 31
Presl, S. v., 281
Press censorship. See Censor-
ship
PfeStice, 368
Pflbram, 191, 366, 438
Priests, 28
Prokop the Great, 194, 255
Prosefi, 367
Protestant church, 108, 231
Protestant exiles, 122
Pta.6ek, of Pirkstein, 82
Purkynfi, Jan, 280
PurkynS, Karel, 302
R
Rais, 277
Raudnitz. iSee Roudnice
Realistic party, 171
Real-schools. iSee Secondary
schools
Reichenberg, 8, 12, 364, 372
Index
485
Religion, 159, 210-232
Religious toleration, 127
Rieger, FrantiSek L., 409
Riesengebirge. See Giant
mountains
Riggs, George C, 467
Rip Mountain, 3, 447
Roads, 375
Roklan, 5
Roman Catholic church, 229,
326, 346
Roudnice, 447
RoJmberk, 437
Ruben, Christian, 288
Rudolph II, 104, 182, 325,
392, 444
Rudolphinum, 306, 411
Rump parliament, 149
Rusalky, 211
Russia, 155, 157
S
Saatz. See 2atec
Sadowa, 147, 444
Safaffk, Paul Josef, 248, 255,
262-262
Safafik, V., 281
Saints, 216-222
Saint Vdclav. See Vaclav I
Saloun, L., 314
Saxon Switzerland, 7, 446
Sdzava monastery, 388
Scheiner, Josef, 190
Schmerling, Baron, 145
Schools. See Education
Schoniger. See Klet
Schreckenstein, 7
Schultz, J., 321
Schwaiger, H., 301
Sculpture, 307-315
Sebor, Karel, 331
Sedlec, 9, 442
Sedlice, 369
Secondary schools, 237
Sedmihorky, 446
Seidan, T., 312
Sequens, 295
Serbs, 157
Serfs, 127, 347
Shopkeepers, 426
Sigismund, 64, 67, 69, 79
Silesia, 124, 238, 462-464
Silver, 366
^imek, Ludflc, 311
Simon, FrantiSek, 305
Singing societies, 325, 330,
344
Sixt of Ottersdorf, 257
Skdia ze Zhofe 257
gkrSta, Karel, 448
Skroup, FrantiSek, 328
Sladek, Josef Vdclav, 271
Slavic races, 156
Slavonia, 206
Slovakland. See Slavonia
Slovaks, 157, 252, 454
Slovan, 139
Small Town, 403
Smetana, BedHch, 330
Smichov, 362
Snow, 8
Snow Dome, 3
Sobgslav I, 28, 447
Sobgslav II, 29, 237
Social democratic party, 171
Social institutions, 189-209
486
Index
Sokols, 189-200, 356
Solferino, 143
Sophia Chotek, 132
Spa resorts. See Carlsbad
^pi6dk, 439
Spitzberg. "See SpiiSdk
Spytihngv, 24, 26
Stadic, 20
Stard, Boleslav, 447
Strd2nov, 370
Steiner, Edward A., 159
Sticka, Jan, 347
Stolba, Josef, 281
Strachosvk^, J., 313
Stdnskjr, Paul, 257
Street railways, 416
Stfekov. See Sohreckenstein
Stfiboh, 211
Strouhal, C, 281
Stullk, K., 194
Hubert, FrantiSek A., 270
Sucharda, Stanislav, 313
Sudetic mountains, 3, 449
Sugar beets, 358
Suk, Josef, 341
Sumava. See Bohemian For-
est
Suleiman I, 100
Svabinsk^, Max, 305
Svatd Hora, 439
Svatopluk, 21, 212, 451
SvStld,, K^olina, 276
Svmabera, V., 281
Svoboda, FrantiSek X., 275
Svoboda, iKarel, 292
Svomost, 160, 289
Switzerland, 1, 7
Sylvius, ^neas, 257
Taafe, Count, 151
T&boT, 72, 425
Taborites, 72, 82, 323
Talis. See Doma^lice
Taxes, 174
Teachers, 236
Technology, institutes of, 243
Tepl river, 421
Textile industries, 364
Teplice, 432^33
Theodore of Prague, 284, 412
Thermal springs, 8
Thirty Years' War, 121, 122,
257, 455
Thomas of JModena, 286
Thomas of Stitn^, 46
Thun family, 288, 327
Tomek, Vdclav Vladivoj, 28,
282
Tonner, Em., 190
Town Hall of Prague, 379
Toys, 368
Transylvania, 1, 145
Trenkwald, 295
Trent, council of, 108
Troppau, 463
Tulka, 295
Turkey, 155
Tumau. See Tumov
Tumov, 200, 366, 447
Tyl, Josef, 269
T^n church, 380
Tyr§, Miroslav, 190
U
Ullik, Josef, 302
Ulrich of Rosenberg, 25, 82
Index
487
United Brethren. See Bo-
hemian Brethren
United States, 13, 15, 191, 205,
374
Unitas Fratrum. See Bo-
hemian Brethren
University of Prague, 39-40,
152, 200, 243
Urban VII, Pope, 53
trsti. See Aussig
Utraquists, 72, 101
VAclav I, 24, 31, 216, 244
Vdclav II, 28, 29, 33, 407
Vaclav III, 33
VAclav IV, 50, 60, 218, 437
Vegetables, 358
Vel Javor, 5
Velenovsk^, Josef, 280
Veles, 211
Venceslas. See Vdclav
Vesna, 211
Victor Emmanuel, 144
Vienna, 150
Vistula river, 6, 463
Vltkovici, 436
Vlachs, 453
Vladislav I, 28, 95, 99
Vladislav II, 392
Vladivoj, 25
V16ek, Jaroslav, 248, 252,
277
Vltava river, 5, 6-7, 374,
407
VolenskJ^, A., 194
Vostrovsk^, Clara. See Win-
low, Clara Vostrovsk^
Vratislav I, 24, 27
Vratislav II, 215
Vrba, Karel, 281
Vrchliekjr, Jaroslav, 248, 273
VySehrad, 19, 29, 316, 384
W
Wachsmann, FrantiSek, 303
Wages, 369
Wagner, A., 312
Waldhauser, A., 303
Waldstein, Albert of, 117-121,
399, 446
Wallenstein. See Waldstein
Wartenberg. See Sedmihorky
Weiss, Karel, 342
Wentzel. See V^lav
WestphaUa, peace of, 121
White Moxmtain, battle of,
109, 254, 461
Wiggin, Kate Douglas, 467
William of Slavata, 111
Windischgratz, Prince, 140
Winlow, Clara Vostrovsk^, x,
283
Women's Clubs, 205
Wtinsoh, Josef, 281
Wurmser, Nicholas, 285
Wyoliffe, John, 60
Young Cech party, 171
Z
ZajeSioe, 9
^amberk, 369
Zampach, 48
Zatec, 13, 358, 372
488
Index
ZdenSk Lev, 99
Zirovnice, 367
Zdenfik of Lobkovic, 106
Zitek, J.
Zebrdk, 219
Ziva, 211
Zelend Hora, 93, 254
2i2ka, John, 73-74, 193, 256,
Zenger, J., ^81
435
Zeniiek, Frantiiek, 295, 407
ZlaU Konina, 437
Zeyer, Julius, 271
Zvgfina, F., 302
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